Love Affair-Take 2
by lickANDpromise
Summary: Ruby is back and she wants Sam. Jealous, conniving, possessive and...in love? Will she give in to her feelings for him and be able to teach a soulless Sam what it means to love? Or will she betray him again? How far will Dean go to get Sam back? What will happen when Dean falls back on Cass? SAM/RUBY FIC, DESTIEL, TORTURE, VIOLENCE, SEX, HURT/COMFORT! Mind the rating, please!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N-** Hello everyone! So this is the start of my third story here on fanfiction. I have to start off by saying I am the writer, yes. However, there are two voices behind this particular story. I have davros fan to thank for the majority of this storyline! We will be collaborating together through the duration of the story so I just want to make it very clear that I can only take credit for the writing and some of the ideas. As requested I am attempting to write it in third person. The story picks up right after Sam takes Michael and Lucifer back to hell, sacrificing himself as well. All will be clarified in future chapters you just gotta keep reading. We hope you enjoy the story as much as we enjoyed composing it! I will try to have the next chapter up a.s.a.p.

**Ruby's POV**

Her world was dark. A burning sensation ripped through what felt like her center, spreading through her like wildfire, stretching her reality to infinity. She had no concept of shape or color just an ink black world in which she was burning. The fire ripped through her more intense than before. She couldn't remember anything before the blackness and flame but she wished she was anywhere but wherever she was. She had no breath, no heartbeat, no figure or form of any kind. She felt everywhere and nowhere at the same time. She could think and feel pain but had no lungs or larynx with which to scream.

Suddenly, she felt as if her reality is spinning, being sucked through a straw. This has never happened before and she's terrified. What is coming now? She is sucked through, gathered into a very small confine for what felt like days. If she could breathe she would be hyperventilating with claustrophobia. Then she was spewed out causing an awful pain, like being splintered apart at a molecular level and reassembled within seconds and suddenly she had form again as she fell to...a floor? She screamed and writhed in agony for a few minutes as it felt like her entire being was rebelling against her. When the pain faded she slowly realized the solidity of the ground beneath her. She almost didn't want to move, afraid this might be a cruel trick but when she moved what she thought is her arm a spark of hope flared through her. She moved her legs and then her head, feeling the ground beneath her and dared to open her eyes. There was a sheet over her face and as she sat up she realized she was naked, but she's not in the body she's used to. She lifted the sheet and saw a flaccid penis a little above the juncture of her thighs. What the hell's happened? The last thing she remembered was the intense feeling of pride as Sam killed Lilith...then it was all blank. But she sure as hell knew this was not a body she would willingly choose to inhabit. The man's belly was round and his body was not the slightest bit in shape. She curled her lip at the vessel she was in. So not her style!

She finally started looking around and realized she could hear people clomping around outside the door that is closed to the rather utilitarian room she was sitting naked in. That sounded like a lot of people. There were little yellow cards with numbers on them sitting all around the room and the smell of over two dozen people pervaded her nostrils. She stood up realizing she was at a crime scene and had a small window of time to get out of there before someone came in and realized the corpse had gotten up and was walking around. People were always so dramatic. She could see the headlines screaming about the zombie apocalypse and rolled her eyes. She needed to get out of there.

…...Three miles from the crime scene...

She stumbled down the street wrapped in the sheet she'd woken up under, finally stumbling across something she can use. She tore the newspaper out of the plastic bag it was in and searched for the date. Shock zinged through her. A year and change? How had she missed over a year? What had happened? She tried to think back to what had happened and had to hold her head as a splitting pain tore through her skull. She fought through the pain as she fell to her knees trying to remember. A montage of images, vague at first than exploding in high definition color, assaulted her mind. Her and Sam talking. Lilith falling onto her side, dead. Sam turning to her. The reveal of what she'd done. Sam trying to exorcise her and failing. Then everything slowed down. She had felt movement behind her, knew it was Dean and turned to confront him only to feel Sam grab hold of her from behind, linking his arms through hers and pulling her back to his front. Dean plunged the demon knife into her stomach, twisting it with a devilish sneer, his eyes cold.

She snapped out of the memories with a sharp inhale that sounded like a scream. A few tears slipped down her cheeks. Sam had betrayed her. She laughed in bitter indignation at that thought. She had betrayed him as well...a plant from the start. The sweetness of his lips played across her memories, so strong she lifted her hand to her lips, almost feeling him against her. She longed to feel him again, to touch him, smell him, taste him, hear his voice laden with pleasure calling out her name. She looked down at the body she was inhabiting and sneers...but first, she needed a sexier meat suit to bring to him. She looked down at the newspaper and a familiarly vindictive smile played across her lips. Iowa, huh? She knew just who her donor was going to be.

…...six hours and 98 miles later...

She stood in the shadows under a tree in the front yard of Dr. Cara Roberts. She remembered exactly how this bitch had stolen away Sam's attention. Sam and Dean had been hunting a siren around this area, Sam secretly looking for demon omens. She remembered the little promises he had always made to her. Promising to call, to keep in touch, to meet her at secret rendezvous. She also remembered how easily he had discarded all those promises the night he had fucked in her office, polluted with alcohol, both desperately seeking companionship. Oh how he'd loved that woman's body. How he'd held her, his tan, brawny muscles sinuously moving against hers, covered in a sheen of sweat. The way he'd kissed her. She shivered at the memory. She'd wanted to run inside the office and tear that beautiful, enticing form to shreds in front of him while he was still inside her screaming for her to stop. She hadn't though. She'd stood in the hallway watching through the blinds they had fucked up. She hadn't wanted to tip Sam off to the fact that she pretty much knew every move he had made the entirety of the time she'd been playing him. She flinched at that thought but couldn't deny that had been what she was doing. She had left the bitch alive to keep up certain pretenses. A smirk spread across her face. Sam had clearly been attracted to this woman...now she was going to take the bitch over.

She walked up to the door and knocked, putting on an injured facade, which wasn't really all that hard in the condition she'd gotten this body in. She knocked a little more urgently and a few seconds later the brunette beauty opened the door, shock cascading over her face.

"Excuse me, ma'am...I...think I may need some...assistance." She said. Cara's eyes lit up with concern and she opened her door wide, gently gesturing Ruby through the door, closing it behind her and floundering around to ease and make her comfortable. She flurried into the kitchen making promises to return with something for her to eat and drink, medical supplies and some towels and blankets. She smiled and shook her head. It was just too easy. Damned good Samaritans! There was never any challenge. Cara swept back into the room, a whirlwind of good intentions, smiles and doctoral inquiries. She ate the food Cara offered her feeling it only right to give the corpse she inhabited one last meal, watching Cara's beautiful body move about the room.

"Do you know what happened to you?" Cara asked, her eyes almond shaped pools of burnt honey reflecting so much curiosity and concern it was almost endearing. She begrudgingly admitted to herself why Sam would be attracted to the woman before her. Ruby shook her head.

"I can't remember anything...I just woke up like this." She gestured at the body she was inhabiting, only half lying. Cara's full pink, almost red lips pulled into a reassuring smile. The cupid's bow of Cara's lips speared Ruby with envy as she remembered Sam lavishing affection on them. It was getting increasingly difficult for her to continue conversing with the sickeningly sweet wretch.

"You may be suffering from some sort of head trauma that could be causing memory loss. I think we should get you to the hospital to get checked out." Ruby nodded, having no intention of going, and Cara mimicked the movement then continued. "Will you let me take you to the hospital?" Ruby stared at her for a minute. Wondering how someone so pure in spirit could also be wrapped in such an ironically sinful package...some people just had it all. Cara came closer, little worry lines creasing her face. "Sir? Are you okay?" Ruby smiled as Cara leaned down to check her over with those lovely eyes.

"Yes. I am fine." Her hands shot out, clasping both sides of Cara's head, pulling her to her knees in front of Ruby, an evil smile played over her face. Cara made a small squeak of fear and her eyes were wide as saucers as she stared into Ruby's face. She cocked her head to the side almost pitying the woman. "It has to be you. Sam liked you enough to fuck you." She ran her hand along the side of Cara's face appreciatively and smiled bitterly. "I can see the temptation" Cara began to struggle and protest making Ruby wrap her legs around the woman's waist to hold her captive. Ruby shrugs. "Besides, if I know Sam..." she rolls her eyes up to look at the ceiling and smiles sardonically, "Which, of course, I do. I know he will want me to have my very own body, empty of all inhabitants other than myself." Cara screamed and began hitting her wildly and bucking against Ruby making her laugh.

"I don't understand!" Cara cried as Ruby grasped her wrists in a firm hold. "Sam-" Hearing Cara say her hunter's name cut off Ruby's laughter so abruptly it was as if it never existed. She snapped her hands out, placing one on either side of Cara's face pulling her in closer to look into her eyes, feeling rage flare through her.

"I'm sure you couldn't have known what he didn't tell you, but you should have picked another hunter to fuck..." Ruby spoke the next as a breath of rage against Cara's lips, "That one is mine!" Confusion flickered through Cara's eyes as Ruby leaned back to stare at her more fully with a haunting smile she was sure reflected the woman's death. "Unfortunately for your sake my dear, it is not true that good always prevails." Cara's eyes filled with terror and she began to scream, trying in a last ditch effort to struggle for her life but Ruby quickly snapped her neck, feeling the reverberation of the bones twisting and popping under her hands.

The body went limp between her legs and she pulled the deadweight onto her lap, watching the life fade out of her future meat suit with a smile. Those beautiful eyes thickly laced by long lashes were open wide in fear and, intriguingly enough, determination. She reached up and closed the lids, feeling the ebb and flow of the life she'd ended slow down then cease. The glow was fading out of the skin, the body boneless, contouring to her lap and as much as could fit on the armchair, allowing gravity to pull the rest in a limp waterfall toward the ground. She stroked her hand through the long, thick, lushly dark curls marveling at how soft the tresses running through her fingers were. Oh yes...this meat suit was perfect!

She didn't know what or who'd brought her back from the dead, nor did she know why but her next priority was to track Sam down. The thought brought an expectant and hopeful smile to her lips.

**A/N-** What did you think of mine and davros's first collaborative chapter?


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N-** Hey guys! I know it has been a while since the last chapter. I promised you a longer one and here it is. I hope you enjoy it! Again, this piece is a collaborative effort between me and davrosfan, I am the writer but the ideas are a joint effort. I want to give a shout out to 753398445a for the review! Thank you, it is much appreciated!

**Disclaimer-** Violence, torture, vulgar language

**Ruby's POV**

Weeks had gone by and she still had no idea what was going on. Why had she been brought back? Who had brought her back? Where the hell was Sam? Weeks of questioning any demon she could get her hands on and still no answers to the endless stream of questions. No one was talking. They were either hiding something, or they simply didn't know. She scoffed at that last thought. In her experience, of which she had a substantial amount of, there was always someone who knew something. So, someone high up had issued a gag order for reasons she could not fathom. What the fuck had happened this last year? She sighed at it all as she stared down at the implements laid before her. Running her fingers over them she listens to the sound of her current victim struggling to get free. She glanced over her shoulder to see the man shaking his head and staring at her with wide tear, fear filled eyes. She twirled the very thin knife she had chosen between her fingers as she turned around. Fresh tears streaked down his bloodied face and his body spasmed against the restraints.

"Please! I told you, I don't know!" Ruby laughed and tsked at him, shaking her head.

"You see, I don't believe you." A small whimper escaped his throat. "I have been questioning you guys for weeks and all I've gotten is a whole lot of, 'I don't know anything' and 'I don't have that kind of status' and my personal favorite..." She leaned into his face and said the last with a grin, "'Do whatever you want, I'm not talking." She sat on the stool she had pulled over to him earlier and ran her hand down his arm making him flinch.

"Please..." He took a few rapid inhales as Ruby wrapped her fingers around his pointer finger. "I don't know anything!" She stared into his eyes as she slid the tip of the thin blade under his nail, just up to the quick, hesitating.

"It could end right here. All you have to do is answer the damned questions." For emphasis she pushed on the blade a little forcing a small noise from the man. "Where is Sam Winchester?" The man whimpered and dropped his head to hang between his shoulders, shaking it back and forth. Ruby sighed and slid the knife up under his nail past the quick and up to the cuticle, angling the knife up to pop the nail free of the skin it was once attached to. The man's screams ripped through the air and his skin gleamed with a fresh layer of sweat. She plucked the nail free of the few threads of skin holding on and stared at it as if analyzing it as she asked him another question. "Let's try this again. Maybe this time you'll answer. Where is Sam Winchester?" At his silence she flicked the nail onto the ground and popped the nail off his middle finger. More screaming, more silence. She was starting to get pissed off. She stood up and strode over to her tools throwing down the knife and choosing something a little more gory. She spun around and laughed at the terror that flooded the mans face.

"Do you know what this is?" She waved it back and forth. He swallowed a few times and shook his head. She laughed and ran her fingers down the black iron both respectful and fearful of its power. She remembered being strapped to a table the four rakes of this instrument tearing her open, Allistair's laughter ringing in her ears. She shook her head slightly to clear away the images and get back with the program. "This is called the Spanish tickler...among other names." She walked over to stand in front of her victim, staring down at his nude, bloodied body, at the iron railroad spikes she'd driven through his thighs and wrists with pentagrams etched into the tops, pinning him to the chair and trapping him in his meat suit. She grabbed his chin lifting his face up to look at the rake-like instrument only inches from his face.

"This is a simple instrument that spares not skin, muscle or bone." A guttural sound escaped his throat as he clenched his eyes shut tight. She squeezed his chin between her fingers and shook his head to get his attention. His eyes opened focusing on hers. "I am losing patience with you. Tell me what I want to know or I will peel the flesh from your bones while you scream." His breathing hitched and his mouth opened and closed a few times as if he was contemplating telling her something and then he clamped his mouth closed, the muscles in his jaw fluttering beneath her fingers. She growled and placed the tips of the tickler against the flesh of his shoulder digging the points in and pulling it diagonally across his chest. She felt his mouth open and the vibration of his scream sing along her fingers against his jaw. The iron points raked through his flesh and muscle, splitting it open, releasing a small geyser of scarlet and revealing patches of gleaming pearl that she knew was his sternum. His head fell backward, chest heaving, his face had taken on a greyish green pallor and the only warning she got was a meaty grumbling sound. The man threw his head to the side and vomited. Ruby jumped back a step as she watched the shit spew from his mouth in an arc onto the floor, some drizzling down onto his shoulder, trailing down his arm. Her face scrunched up as the acrid scent hit her nostrils. He was a spewer...she hated it when they did that. When he finished she came forward and slid back onto her stool. The man moved his head toward her his eyes in her direction, but he couldn't seem to focus on her.

She looked him over. The fingers on his left hand were crushed and contorted, his cheeks and lips swollen, bruised and cut open. The muscles on his thighs were exposed from where she had cut the skin from them, coated with a layer of salt, which was now pink with blood. He was missing two nails from fingers on his right hand which was also covered in third degree burns. He was a mangled, bloodied mess especially once you included the new wound across his chest from the tickler. She walked over to her table again and grabbed the jug of holy water returning and placing it at her feet while sitting back down. She shook her head and sighed. He was going to pass out on her again soon with the way his eyes were rolling back in his head.

"Okay look..." She began, crossing her arms. The man still couldn't focus on her so she reached out and slapped him rocking his head back, pulling her hand back to fold against her ribs. "Pay attention because I am only going to offer this once." The man rolled his head forward and seemed to work entirely too hard at focusing on her, but at least he made the effort. "If you answer my questions I promise you I will kill you." He smiled a bit at that and Ruby could see the red staining his teeth.

"You swear?" his voice was thick with blood and suffering. She nodded.

"I swear. You won't have to worry about your boss finding out you broke his gag order." His eyes widened a little and she shook her head. "I'm not stupid you know. There is always someone pulling the strings in hell." He laughed a pitiful gurgling noise that sent him into a coughing fit, blood trailing from the corner of his mouth. She had clearly damaged something internally at some point during their session. "You answer my questions, I kill you. No more Hell, no more Earth or fear or being someones bitch. Dead. Don't ask me where demons go when they die because I don't know. Maybe you'll send me a postcard to answer that one." He chuckled silently then nodded his head spitting a mouthful of blood onto the floor. She sighed in anticipation at finally getting some answers then used her foot to slide the jug away from them.

"Okay. First question, what happened after Lucifer was sprung from the cage?" A minute of silence passed making Ruby contemplate going for the holy water but then he began talking.

"Everyone was dead. Allistair, Azazel, Lilith...all of them dead at the hands of the Winchesters, but our lord was free so we thought that was okay." He looked into Ruby's eyes. "I know you died. We all know of the sacrifice you and Lilith made to free Lucifer."

"Do you know how I was brought back or by who?" He shook his head, eyes filling with confusion.

"No. Nobody knows you are back. I don't know who brought you back or better yet who has the power to bring you back or why they would." She nodded her head and he continued. "After you, Lilith and the Winchester boy freed Lucifer he spent most of the time you missed trying to get Sam to say yes, to claim his true vessel." He shook his head and scoffed. "Turns out the conception of those boys was an order from on high because they were supposed to be the main pieces on the chessboard when the apocalypse was supposed to come to a head. Sam and Dean Winchester are descendents of Cain and Abel, one born to good one to evil. Funny how things tend to come full circle isn't it?" She scoffed at that and nodded her head.

"So let me guess, Sam was, of course, Lucifer's vessel while Dean was Michael's?" He nodded his head.

"Bingo."

"I feel a but coming."

"Isn't there always a but somewhere?" Again she nodded "Yeah there is a big fucking but in this story." He looked into Ruby's eyes and his words were latent with rage. "The apocalypse never happened." Ruby's heart skipped a beat and her breathing stopped, eyes going wide.

"What?" She asked on an exhale. His face scrunched up and he spit another mouthful of blood onto the floor as if attempting to clear away a foul taste.

"Yeah. Those cock-sucking Winchesters had to put there two cents in. They couldn't just live the life they were destined. NO! They have to go and fuck up the natural order a couple dozen times and screw everything else up too!"

"How-"

"How?! I'll tell you how. Dean fucking Winchester never said yes to Michael. Sam accepted Lucifer but it seems they had a plan." A momentary zing of pride lit through Ruby at the revelation that Sam had said yes and taken in Lucifer. "They got all four of the horseman's rings which is kind of like the Go to Jail square on a monopoly board."

"I don't think I am catching your drift." She felt her face crumple in confusion. The man groaned.

"You know, 'Go to Hell. Go straight to hell. Do not Pass Go. Do not collect $200!' That sort of thing. Those rings combined with a little Latin chant was a one way ticket back to the box with no get out of jail free card in sight."

"But Sam said yes?" Her face crumpled even more and she felt her heart racing trying to keep up with her mind.

"Oh, he said yes alright. He played the fuck out of Lucifer and all the rest of us. Now, he is currently being torn apart in Hell where I hope he suffers for the rest of eternity, the fucker!" Simultaneously her heart clenched and she saw red. How dare he talk about her Sam that way. She fought the urge to mutilate him some more in exchange for the hope of getting clarification.

"So Sam is in Hell?" He looked at her like she had half a brain.

"In how many languages do you want me to spell this out for you? YES! Sam fought Lucifer back long enough to open the gate to the box and lock Lucifer, Michael and himself away for the rest of eternity." It felt as if the ground beneath her stool had turned vertical spilling her into an abyss. Sam was locked in the cage with two very pissed off brothers...forever. Her heart beat filled her ears, her vision expanding and receding with each meaty thump. She stayed like that for what felt like forever before something warm and liquid splashed onto her arm. When she looked down she saw a small puddle of blood on her arm with droplets sprinkled around it and knew the man she'd been talking to had spit at her. When she looked at him his lips were moving but she couldn't hear what he was saying. He looked frustrated as if he had been trying to get her attention for a while to no avail.

A while back she had stolen the Demon knife from Dean's weapon cache in the trunk of his impala. He hadn't been using it, since the sorry bitch wasn't hunting anymore, so she had taken back what was rightfully hers. She didn't remember unsheathing it but the warm weight of the blade was clasped in her palm coming down in an arc and plunging into the hollow between the collar bone and shoulder. The bright orange electricity lit through the man highlighting his skeleton in brief bursts of color and he screamed a high pitched piteous peel of terror and anguish. Something inside her snapped and Ruby's arm just became mechanical, arcing upward and slicing down, carving into the flesh wherever the blade might fall. She felt the warmth of the blood splashing up onto her face, arms, chest, neck. She couldn't bring herself to stop, not even after the orange electricity stopped zinging through the man's flesh when met with the blade, announcing his death.

Eventually she fell to her knees on the floor at his feet, resting her forehead on his knee. She sat there pushing her upper body against his legs, folding her arms across his lap and laying her head on them. Her breathing was too fast, vision blurry, heart racing, and for the first time in over one hundred years she felt nauseous.

Everything she had worked so hard for, everything she had sacrificed...it was all gone. Lucifer was locked away once again. Sam. Her beautiful, sexy, strong, smart as hell, wonderful Sam...was gone. Images of Sam being tortured and torn apart by Lucifer and Michael over and over again flashed through her mind and that did it. She fell off to the left side of the chair the dead man was sitting in and threw up. When she finished she stared at the puddle of vomit searching for the heart she was sure was in there somewhere. Time didn't seem to exist as she stared at the vile pool before her. Emotions tore through her so fast she couldn't identify most of them. Finally she settled on an angry determination and pulled herself to her feet.

She glared at the mess she had made of the demon who had torn the foundations of her world from underneath her feet. She was standing in a lake of blood. The knife was sticking out of the man's throat, his head lolled to the side. It stank like some cross between a slaughterhouse and what she guessed a vomitorium would have smelled like. She yanked the knife out and cleaned it as best she could on the few "clean" patches of her shirt that remained though she wasn't sure how anything on her could have been left unaffected by the last five hours. She sheathed the knife and began pacing circles around the body in the chair. What was she going to do? Sam had been the key to opening the cage the first time, now he was stuck in there along with Lucifer...and Michael. How was she going to spring them free this time? She stopped as she remembered the guy saying the four horseman's rings were a gate to the cage. Maybe if she got them she could reopen the cage. Hadn't he also said they were a one way ticket though? She shook her head and began pacing again. Nothing was one way. There was always a loophole, she just had to find it.

She stopped in her tracks again as she realized the major flaw in her plan. How the fuck was she going to get her hands on the rings? She had no idea what those boys had to do in order to get the damned things in the first place. They were pretty much capable of doing damned near anything when they put their minds to it, and currently one of them was being hanged, drawn and quartered in a small brutal version of hell even she couldn't fathom. That thought made her stomach churn and heart clench. She shook it off and began pacing again holding a hand against her stomach in a feeble attempt to stay the nausea. Where could the rings have gone? They were obviously too damned powerful to be left floating around, not that Dean would be that irresponsible...ever. No, she was sure he had either taken and stashed them or returned them to the horsemen. She ripped her hands through her hair in frustration as she realized how impossible it would be to get her hands on them. She might as well forget that option, because it was just going to be a waste of time. She couldn't stand still as various plots flitted through her mind: some crazy, some ridiculous and most were just downright suicidal.

Time just didn't exist for her as she paced from the demon she had turned to ground beef, to the table displaying her torture implements, to the window, the door, the crack in the far wall then back to the minced demon. Hamburger, table, window, door, wall, hamburger, table, window, door, wall...on and on she went cycling her circuit until her mind fell into a numb, thoughtless place. She finally fell to the floor folding her legs underneath her and staring at the gory scene in front of her. Images flickered across her mind. Her stabbing the knife into the man mercilessly, sparing no stretch of flesh from her madness. She felt the knife plunge into the man's face, the metal breaking through the bone and pushing the fractured and broken shards out of place as it slid into the meatier depths hidden within the skull. She remembered the vibrations of the knife scraping against the bones so vividly her fingers twitched. Then she flashed back to just before her break: her vision was blurred as she stared down at the splash of red warmth on her arm. It seemed to take forever to look at the face of the man before her, her movements sluggish her head feeling as if it were made of cobalt. It took her longer than it should have to focus on his face but she could see his lips moving. He had been trying to tell her something but then some dam inside of her had broken. She surged to her feet and stormed over to stand in front of the dead body examining it as if she could uncover his secrets. He had been telling her something and she had killed him from an emotional break! A red hot frustration and rage boiled through her as she strode over to her toy table placing her palms flat against its surface and leaning on them, letting her head hang loose between her shoulders, breathing deep in an attempt to reign in her emotions. She had already lost control of them once tonight and killed her only lead she had found too early.

She saw Sam in her mind being pulled apart. Heard the meaty pop as his shoulder dislocated then popped free of his socket, followed by the wet fleshy squishing, tearing sound of the arm being pulled away from his body. She felt hot and cold all over as she flipped the table spilling the tools onto the floor in a rain of metal. The table slid across the floor on its side with a metallic scream to come to a halt against the wall.

"FUCK!" She screamed. She stood staring into space shaking her head then burst into a fit of laughter that had her clutching her ribs and tears streaming down her face. She finally stopped, wiped the tears away and began picking up her scattered toys. She needed to find out the name of the ass sitting in Hell's throne, how to get Sam and Lucifer out of the box, and had to have a talk with Dean Winchester. She laughed again at that thought. No good had ever come to anyone as a result of working with those boys. This time would be different though because they both wanted the same thing...Sam. But first she needed more information.

Looked like she was going demon hunting.

**A/N- **Alright guys. R&amp;R please. Let davros and I know how we are doing. See ya next time!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N-** Hey guys! A lot happens in this chapter, a lot of secrets revealed, alliances made, violence, etc. I hope you guys enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed writing it! I've mentioned before that this is a collaborative effort so I cannot claim all the credit for any of the ideas you read. Enjoy! Please R&amp;R, any feedback is, as always, welcome! Quick shout out before the fun begins to Maria for the review, it is appreciated, love!

**Disclaimer-** Violence and scheming, the flashback in italics is not mine save the very last part, I claim nothing on that part, all thanks for that particular scene should go to the amazing Eric Kripke!

**Dean's POV**

**Cicero, Indiana**

Of course he had known someone had broken into his Impala. He made it a regular habit to check in on his supplies and make sure nothing had been tampered with. It had become a particular obsession after he had caught Ben going through his trunk. He still remembered the sight of Ben holding the sawed off to his shoulder. He shook his head to clear the image and the tightening in his gut away. As he stared down at the collection of hunter tools he felt like he had been violated just knowing that someone had reached their thieving mitts into his baby and stolen from him. He shook his head. This was not the first time he had stood staring into the depths of his trunk, pondering who had broken into it. They had obviously known what they were after and that he had it so they were knowledgeable whoever they were. He heard the door to the garage open and his hands flew to the lid of the trunk already pulling it down to close it before he glanced over his shoulder to see Lisa staring at him with her head cocked to the side, that cute little furrow between her eyebrows suggesting she was confused. She had stopped only a few steps from the doorway. Over a year he had been with her and Ben and still he couldn't bear her to see any evidence of what he was. He let the trunk close and turned his back on it resting his hips against the tail end of the car. Lisa stared at him before closing the distance between the two of them, pressing her body flush against his and wrapping her arms around his waist. He knew she felt hurt by his actions, knew it was painful for her to watch him flounder around and hide anything that had to do with hunting from her. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his cheek on the top of her head. She lifted her head to look into his eyes and her lips parted to say something but she never got the chance. He dipped his head down to claim her lips. She let out a surprised sound before sinking into the kiss. When he pulled back his breathing was a bit irregular and she seemed to be completely out of breath. She stared into his eyes as she ran a finger along his jaw line.

"Come to bed. It's late and I'm cold." He smiled a bit at the last part of her statement and she smiled in return. The missing knife brought him back though. He placed a light kiss on her lips and turned her around giving her a light nudge toward the door with a swat on her ass. She let out a little yelp and looked back over her shoulder at him, standing and waiting for him to follow her. He smiled and shook his head.

"Go warm the bed up. I'll be up in a bit." Her smile fell a little and he could see the effort she put into not looking disappointed, the knowing gleam in her eyes before she nodded and turned away to start walking back to the house.

"Don't be too long or I'll start without you." She called over her shoulder and closed the door with a little wink. He sighed, wondering why he couldn't live a normal life then laughed. This was the most normal he had been his entire life. He turned back to the trunk and started pulling the tarp back over it before he saw a figure standing in the corner. He froze gauging how much time he had before whoever or whatever it was attacked him and decided he didn't have enough time to get to his weapons. But he tried anyway. He tore the tarp back and yanked the trunk open grabbing the first thing to come to hand, which happened to be a sawed off loaded with rock salt rounds. Well, at least if it was human this was pretty much the only non-lethal scare tactic he had. He put the gun to his shoulder and moved to the side of the trunk aiming at the corner to find it empty. He moved forward in a fast crouch-walk looking around as he did. He was almost to the corner before he heard the thump of his trunk closing. He pivoted around to see a woman leaping up to sit cross legged on the roof of his impala. He circled back a bit keeping the woman locked in the sights of his shotgun. She watched him with a smile pulling up the left corner of her mouth as if she had expected this. The light caught her eyes showing them to be a spectacular shade of brown that was more golden-yellow than actual brown. Her hair was dark and curly, falling down to her hips. She sat casually, elbows resting on her thighs hands hanging loosely. He felt his face crumple in confusion. Why was she so familiar to him? He could have sworn he had seen her while working a case. He saw the woman in a lab coat sitting at a desk talking to him and Sam. He remembered her being hung over from a night of partying the first time he and Sam had met her. The name finally came to him.

"Dr. Kara Roberts?" The woman nodded.

"Good memory, Dean!" He flinched at the way she said his name as if she was really familiar with him, then snugged the gun to his shoulder a little more firmly. She nodded in the direction of the garage door with a coy smile. "Your woman is positively luscious." She grins now. "Fiesty..." She leans forward a bit. "I like my meat a little spicy." She winks then sits back. A spike of fear shoots through him. If she was threatening Lisa and Ben he was going to put her down.

"How do you know my name? We never give out our real names." She laughed and he slid his finger into the trigger guard, preparing for anything. "Who are you? What are you doing here?" Kara's head tipped to the side and a playful smile came to her lips.

"I'm Dr. Roberts, Dean. You know that." He stared at her, really looking at her then shook his head one time in both directions, trying not to let her get out of his sight.

"Not anymore you aren't. So, who are you?" She sighed, placed her palms behind her flat on the roof of the car and leaned back.

"You know, you aren't very hospitable. You could at least invite me in or ask me if I would like something to drink. I am kinda hungry. Who do I have to kill to get some French fries around here?" He tensed up at that last knowing just who was sitting in front of him and fired the shotgun in a ringing explosion. Ruby rolled down the windshield landing in a crouch, staring at him. "Now that was rude."

"You want to know what rude is? Rude is breaking into a man's garage and car and stealing from him. That's rude!" She stuck her bottom lip out in a pout as she drew herself up to her full height and crossed her arms across her chest.

"If you want to get really technical it wasn't stealing. As far as I remember, I never gave the Kurdish knife to you guys, you confiscated it. So I was technically reclaiming my property." She lifted her chin as if challenging him and he scoffed.

"Really?" He raised his eyebrow, "Who did you kill to get a hold of that knife in the first place, Ruby?" She stared at him for a second before throwing her head back in a laugh.

"That's the question, isn't it? It is a really old knife so there have been many predecessors who have wielded it before either of us. So, does it really matter who I killed to get it?" He shook his head and lowered the shotgun. He still had it at his shoulder and ready to fire but it was pointing at the ground now. No point in aiming it if he wasn't going to shoot her. Yet.

"Besides, it was the instrument of my death. I think that makes it more mine than yours anyway, don't you?" Dean shrugged off her last statement remembering the satisfaction he had felt plunging that knife into her as Sam held her for him. He remembered feeling a dark smile curl his lips as he twisted the knife, watching Ruby's wide, surprised, pain-filled eyes flash in recognition of her demise and the O of her mouth widen with pain. She had made only a small choking noise, to her credit. He had admitted to himself that he wished she would have screamed to punctuate the moment in his memories all the more.

"What are you doing here, Ruby? Better yet...how are you even alive?" She cocked her head to the side with a smile, but it was more irritated than amused.

"I can answer the former but not the latter."

"You don't know who or what brought you back? Because you were dead. I killed you myself." Frustration and anger glinted in her eyes as she lifted her chin to look down her nose at him.

"No. I don't know anymore than you do about my reappearance. But that isn't why I am here." Now Dean was confused. Did she think he had brought her back...not that he hadn't thought about it but that was about the only reason he could think for her being here.

"Then why are you here?" She stared at him for a minute then laughed so hard she had to put a hand against the hood of the Impala to steady herself.

"You thought I came here because I thought You..." She pointed a finger at him, "YOU had something to do with my resurrection?" She chuckled a bit then shook her head. "You daft boy, you. No, I know you had absolutely no reason to bring me back. Hell you killing me was a long time in coming." He was offended at her insinuation though he couldn't quite pinpoint why.

"What if I found a way to resurrect you so you could help me get Sam out of the cage?" He was the one who took on a haughty look now and Ruby was speechless for a minute before shaking her head.

"Because I wouldn't have been able to surprise you if you had been the one who brought me back. Let us not play games, Dean. We have both been through too much together for such insignificant measures." He scoffed and she straightened a bit and took a few steps around the front end of the car to rest her butt against the right panel, he watched her every move.

"Ironically enough, I came here to talk to you about Sam." He flinched and unconsciously moved the gun up an inch. "Calm down. I want to help you spring him from the box."

"Why?" He marveled at how much suspicion and derision one word could hold as Ruby stared a hole through him. She stared at him as if willing him to believe her.

"Because. There is something about you boys, some power or influence that drew me in." She looked away when he scoffed. "I fear, you gave me back a piece of my humanity..." He laughed and the shotgun fell to hang loosely in the grip of his right hand while the left was wrapped around his middle.

"OH SHIT!" He laughed so hard he staggered back into a tool box. "Oh, that was a good one, Ruby!" He wiped the tears from under his eyes then wagged his finger at her, "I thought you didn't want to play games?" Another whooping fit of laughter followed. When he finished he looked up at her and he felt his laughter fade, his face slowly wiped clean of the humor he had felt. Her eyes were shining with sincerity. Her lips twisted into a hard line as if willing him to feel the truth behind her words.

"You have got to be kidding me, right? All the shit you put us through and you expect me to believe you have feelings for us?!" He threw his head back, staring at the ceiling and releasing a frustrated breath. When he looked back at Ruby she was still staring at him, biting her lip. She almost looked as if she were scared he wouldn't believe her. "This has got to be the weirdest shit I have ever lived to see! A demon loving the Winchesters." A sneer crept across her mouth.

"Not so much you, jackass, as Sam!" She looked away, staring at the wall just to the left of him. He swore under his breath as he saw fear and pain flit across her face. He had felt those same things so many times when he thought about his life and where Sam was. He flinched as it occurred to him that Ruby might actually love Sam. It wasn't the sunniest thought in the world but her feelings for Sam would pretty much guarantee her loyalty and devotion to getting Sam out of the box. He looked her over again and shook his head with a small smile. Did she know that Sam was walking around the Earth, still? His smile disappeared as he remembered finding out Sam was alive, then how deluded he had been at thinking Sam without a soul was better than no Sam at all. She probably didn't know that Sam had attempted to kill Bobby and was now on the road somewhere, running...from Dean. He was going to restore his brother...even if it meant destroying him. If he had to use Ruby to do it...pffft! He wouldn't hesitate. She had used both of them before so it was almost as easy as taking his next breath for him to commit to using her for his means.

"What is your plan on getting Sam back?"

**··········**

**Ruby's POV**

**2 days 13 hours later**

**Illchester, Maryland**

**St. Mary's Convent**

She couldn't believe it had taken her this long to think of it! She was still kicking herself for it as she walked through the door to the lower level chamber of St. Mary's church, the very room where Sam had killed Lilith and broken open Lucifer's cage. This damned church had seen a lot of action. Bad planning on the founders part to build a church on top of the original door into the cage. She shrugged. Oh well, it wasn't her problem. She dropped the bag she was carrying in the middle of the room a muffled, incessant crying sounding from the it. Azazel had come here and talked to Lucifer without the aid of a sacrifice, but she wasn't as strong as him, she needed young, innocent blood to kick start the connection. She knelt before the bag and remembered the joy and pride she had felt as Sam had killed Lilith. The pure bliss she had felt at knowing Lucifer was going to be free. She shook her head and unzipped the bag, the crying got louder. She grabbed the chalk out of the bag and drew a circle. Inside of it she drew thirteen half circle lines joining in a single point on the center. She then took out five candles placing them in points around the circle forming a pentagram, starting to light them at the northern most candle.

She reached into the bag and lifted out the most important ingredient to the ritual, a three month old baby. She hooked her hands underneath its arms and held it at arms length watching it wriggle. She stared at it, seeing how its fat, useless little legs pinwheeled and jerked as if trying to find purchase on something. Its little face was scrunched up and red, covered in tears. Snot was running from its nose and its hands were balled up moving back and forth and occasionally moving to its face, rubbing and irritating the skin more. She felt her face scrunch up and couldn't imagine why the main goal of human lives was to make one of these. Clearly the fun had to be in the making of and not the aftermath. The baby opened its eyes and stared at her as if sensing her thoughts making her jerk a little. Its eyes were glassy and pink from crying but the big crystal blue portals that stared at her stopped her cold.

The eyes were filled with innocence and purity, something Ruby had lost so long ago she saw it only as a weakness. It wasn't until she felt the moist little hand on her cheek that she realized she must have slowly let her arms drop and pull the baby closer to her. The hand moved to her nose then to the hair at her neck. The thing was making these cute little cooing noises and squirming its little body to get a better angle to play with the long hair. It grabbed a handful and brought the hair up to its face laughing a small yet high pitched squeal of laughter as it rubbed the hair on its cheek then put the tuft of hair in its open mouth. Ruby felt a twinge of something twist its way down her throat and spear through her core. She could kind of understand what would make humans, like the babies mother, so crazy to protect them that they would carelessly put their lives on the line. The little beasts had a certain magic to them that was endearing. The thought made her jump and the babies eyes met hers sensing the change. Ruby put her hand on the back of the babies head and lowered it to the floor to lay it in the center of the circle.

As she pulled back and dug through the bag she couldn't help but remember the incredibly, unreal softness of the babies hair. She pulled the newly stolen athame, nothing tainted or already used for this, from her bag and watched how the babies fast uncaring movements jerked its little body. She shook her head and began the ritual. She raised the point to the sky then put it to the circle tracing the outside ring then brought the blade to the flesh above her heart pushing the blade in at a forty-five degree angle to allow her blood to flow down the blade. Once her blood flowed from tip to hilt she raised it with both hands to the sky and rose up to her full height on her knees. She stared down at the small defenseless creature and saw it chewing on its fist and staring at her, moving its little legs and free arm. Its eyes were filled with tears as if it knew what was coming and knew it could do nothing to stop it. She looked to the ceiling and closed her eyes, chanting the five Latin words required. She felt the ground rumble slightly beneath her knees then turned the blade in her grip so the point was angled down. She squeezed her eyes shut as she brought the knife down. She had expected small screams of some sort but heard nothing. She opened her eyes and looked down to make sure she had met her mark.

The knife was buried in the babies chest right where the heart should be. Its legs pinwheeled frantically for a second, its face the reddest shade of red, mouth open as if the scream it wanted to let rip was lodged in its neck. Its eyes never left Ruby's as tears leaked from its giant, clear blue ones. She had seen many things in her almost eight hundred years but as tears spilled from her eyes and her heart clenched, she knew this moment would haunt her. As she watched the life fade then abruptly end of the small creature before her the blood she had spilled began flowing in a spiral pattern until it was flowing in a constant wave. A breeze of unknown origin began to rip through the room tangling Ruby's hair around her. A sonic pop sounded through the room and everything suddenly stopped. She could here the staccato rhythm of her breathing and the techno skip of her heart as she felt another presence.

"Lucifer?" She was having a hard time breathing. "My lord?" She gasped out. She didn't get a verbal response. No, she was slammed with a montage of images that knocked her head back and bowed her spine.

_She was standing in a cemetery with a man whom she knew was the vessel for Michael. They had been talking and she had tried to convince Michael to join her, that they didn't have to do this. Michael would not budge and so the apocalypse was here. They circled, sizing each other up when the rev of an engine sounds. Suddenly both she and Michael turn their heads to watch the black impala blaring some old school tune, Ruby recognizes it as Def Leppard's Rock of the ages, come cruising into the graveyard. When it comes to a stop Dean steps out and leans on his car door._

_"Sorry, am I interrupting something?" She and Michael glare at Dean as he closes the door and moves forward. "Hey," He says to her. "We need to talk." She and Michael share a look before looking back at Dean. _

_"Dean." She stared at him as if he had grown another upper body at the waist. "Even for you, this is a whole new mountain of stupid." _

_"I'm not talking to you. I'm talking to Sam." She felt her eyebrows raise. _

_"You're no longer the vessel, Dean." Michael pipes in from the background. Dean moves his eyes to look at him. "You've got no right to be here." Dean moves his head so he is looking at Michael full on._

_"Adam, if you're in there, I am so sorry."_

_"Adam isn't home right now." Michael responds smugly. _

_"Well then you are next on my list, buttercup. But right now I need five minutes alone with him." He indicates her with a tip of his head._

_"You little maggot! You are no longer a part of this story!" Michael takes a step towards Dean._

_"Hey!" Michael turns toward the voice, "Ass-butt!" Then Castiel launches a molotov at Michael who screams and goes up in flame a sub-sonic ringing goes through the atmosphere before Michael explodes in a small shower of particles, disappearing. She moves the hand she had put up in a feeble attempt to protect herself from the explosion to see Dean staring at the spot Michael had just occupied in shock. Dean moves a few steps and looks back at Castiel._

_"Ass-butt?" He asks the angel who shrugs while breathing heavily._

_"He'll be back and upset, but you got your five minutes." She turned to look at the angel who had dared kill her brother in front of her. _

_"Castiel." She takes two steps forward. "Did you just molotov my brother...with holy fire?" The angel holds his hands slightly out to the side and begins shaking his head back and forth, taking a step backward._

_"Uh...no...I-" She cuts him off._

_"No one dicks with my brother, Michael, but me." Castiel takes a deep breath as if sensing his demise then she raises her hand to her face level and snaps her fingers. The angel explodes in a shower of blood, guts and bones to the sound of one solid crunch. Bobby Singer who was standing behind and to the right of where the angel had been flinched back as he was sprayed with the gore and he and Dean turn to stare at her breathing heavily with fear and disbelief._

_"Sammy, can you hear me?" She turns to look at Dean. Then faces him completely. _

_"You know, I tried to be nice, for Sammy's sake." She takes a few steps, closing the distance between her and Dean. "But you..." she reaches out to grip the lapels of his brown leather jacket, "Are such a pain, in my ass." She launches him backward onto the hood of his Impala splintering the windshield under his weight and the force of the impact. She takes a step toward Dean who is sprawled on the hood making pain noises when she hears the bang of a gun and barely feels the stinging hot entrance of the bullet in her shoulder. She turns around and sees Bobby Singer with the Colt pointed at her. He fires another round hitting her in the chest just below her left pectoral. She felt her face fall into tight, pissed off lines, head cocking to the side as she watched him lower the gun. She glanced down at the hole he had just made in her chest. Bobby looked over at Dean then shrugged right before she lifted her hand and moved it in a sweeping motion from left to right snapping Bobby's neck. Dean stared in horror._

_"NOOOO!" Dean screamed, sitting up on the hood as she walked over to him and grabbed his ankle, dragging him off the hood of the car._

_"Yes." Then her fist connected with the side of Dean's face, spinning him around, blood pouring from his mouth onto the hood of his Impala. Dean stands straight and turns to face her._

_"Sammy?" he stares at her willing Sam to talk to him. "Are you in there?" She moves forward._

_"Oh, he's in here alright." She smashed her left fist into his face sending Dean crashing back onto the Impala's hood. "And he's gonna feel the snap of your bones." She grabbed his lapels, standing him up to punch him again, this time sending Dean falling to the ground. "Every single one." She says as she moves forward to jack him up off the ground against the side of the car. "We are gonna take our time." Following that last line came a series of fast, devastating punches. Each hit gashed his face open and puffed it up in the spots she made contact with, snapping his head back and forth with the force of them. _

_"Sammy, it's okay..." He turned his head to look at her, "It's okay, I'm here! I'm here, I'm not gonna leave you." She felt the tug of compassion tear through her telling her to put her fist down and step back. Felt her face crumple into something frantic as she felt Sam really start to fight against her. She punched Dean again and again and still he continued to plead for Sam._

_"I'm not gonna leave you!" She pulled her fist back but it was slow, like she was fighting against hurricane winds. _

_Sam was clawing his way to the surface and she felt panic rose within her. If Sam got to the surface something told her she wasn't going to make it but she couldn't bring herself to hit Dean again. The desire to hit him screamed through her but the body wouldn't, couldn't respond. She could feel the internal fight between Sam and herself raging, the two at a draw for dominance. Then the sun gleamed off the silver trim on the door and caught her eye. She knew she wasn't the one who moved their eyes to look at the little green plastic soldier jammed into the ashtray in the backseat but that Sam had done it. She felt the fist she had raised in the air begin to unclench and fought to keep her arm up, but as images slammed through her mind of Sam and Dean, one after another she felt her control over him fade. She felt Sam surge to the forefront, taking control and shoving her into the background to be the spectator. Sam's fist unclenched and he staggered back with a gasp letting Dean fall to the ground. She felt Sam's horror at what he'd done to Dean, felt his chest rise and fall rapidly, then an odd wave of relief swept through him. She felt fear kick in but Sam paid it no mind._

_"It's okay, Dean. It's all going to be, okay." He breathes heavily for a second then says with assurance he truly felt, "I've got him." he digs in his pant pocket and retrieves the four horsemen's rings looking down at them. She felt the pure joy of Sam and the absolute terror and hatred of Lucifer clash, Lucifer trying to rise up but Sam just swatted him back as if he was no more than a nuisance to be rid of. He throws the rings onto the ground and says a brief Latin chant. The ground around the rings crumbles and gets sucked away into what looks like a bottomless hole, but she knows where it goes. Sam turns back to give Dean a lingering stare full of things he wished he had done and said, the fact that he had always thought, even in their line of work that there would be more time, that he loved him and wanted nothing in this world or the next more than to see Dean happy, alive and with a family. He breathes heavily as he fights Lucifer, who is bucking like a mad man against Sam, and nods at Dean, glancing at the hole he was about to jump into then back at his brother. Right as Sam is about to dive into the hole Michael's voice turns him around._

_"Sam!" Michael shakes his head, "It's not gonna end this way. Step back."_

_"You're gonna have to make me!" Sam screams, daring Michael to come closer._

_"I have to fight my brother, Sam. Here and now. It's my destiny!" Sam breathes raggedly as he looks back at his own brother. He was going to end it all, take it all down: destiny, the prophecy, the apocalypse...it all ended here but it wouldn't end in fire. He closed his eyes and held his arms out to his side allowing the wind from the hole and gravity to pull him backwards._

_"NOOOOO!" He heard Michael scream and felt the angel grab a hold of his shirt to start pulling him back. Sam grabbed a hold of Michael's arm and pushed off the ground with his feet, pulling Michael with him, backwards into the hole. Right before they fell she felt Lucifer throw his essence out giving his power to resurrect to a demon and giving him orders to bring her back. _

She pulled away from the memories with a scream as she crashed to the floor.

"Get me out!" Lucifer's voice, or at least she assumed that was who it was, screamed through her mind. She got two more words out of it all, "Find...Astaroth..." then the connection ended with a fizzling noise and a small pop that seemed to sound through her head, making her jump. She lay there, tears running down her face, breathing raggedly. Her poor, foolishly brave Sam! A sob escaped her as she sat up with what felt like way too much effort. She was shaking as she sat there. Astaroth. She had to find Astaroth.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N- **Hello again everyone! I want to take this moment to apologize for the length between my last chapter and now. I got a little wrapped up with writing my other story on here. SO, this chapter is extra long to make up for my absence. It is great to be back. I forgot how much I enjoy this storyline. I hope you enjoy this one as much as I loved writing it! Please R&amp;R! I'll have another chapter up A.S.A.P. See you all next chapter, Ciao!

**Disclaimer- **Collaborative effort with davrosfan (not all ideas are mine), Graphic Sexual Content and Violence, Gore and torture, Vulgar language...Please, mind the rating!

**Ruby's POV**

How hard could it be to find one damned demon? She wasn't willing to venture back into hell because she was trying to maintain a low profile. Her being back from the dead would raise a few alarms and a barrage of questions she just had no time nor the patience to handle. She had to find Sam and that required her undivided attention. Sighing in defeat she slumped into the hard wood chair and yanked her cleaning cloth off the table holding her array of inquisitor implements and began wiping the blood off her knife. Almost two weeks of search and torture and still she had no real leads on Astaroth. The only slightly useful, _way _outdated, piece of information she had was that demon 17 had last seen Astaroth on the coast of Chile about a decade ago. She stared distantly at a spot on the wall, racking her brain trying to dredge up any information she knew about him, cleaning her knife mechanically.

_She stood over yet another victim, the woman's piercing screams flowing and echoing around, her blood slick along the skin of Ruby's arms as her knife slid smoothly along the underside of the woman's skin, peeling it free from her body. Alastair had taught her how to remove the entire dermis at once so that it quite literally looked like a meat suit. His version of comedy. Her knife slipped under the last of the skin and the woman's head lulled to the side, eyes rolling. She was just this close to passing out, so Ruby grabbed the bowl of holy water she had been using to periodically clear the blood off her toys and add a little more sting, dumping it on her. The woman arched up off the table, clearly in too much pain to scream. Ruby watched the water sizzle and burn along and under the flesh that began to slip a little. Ruby slid her fingers under one edge of the skin and slowly peeled it off. The whole removal process took about ten minutes and then she was clipping the skin onto three hooks to be cleaned and dried out. Alastair was very fond of his trophies. Then she just had a few odds and ends to clip off, like the bits of cartilage- the nose and ears- that loved to stick out from the rest of the body as if demanding more attention than the rest._

"_Alastair would be proud." She glanced back over her shoulder at Astaroth. She forgot he was there, having gotten taken away with the task before her. She said nothing in response, instead she just offered him a smile, one that curled cruelly, menacingly at the edges of her lips. He looked away from her back at the woman strapped to her table, crossing his arms over his chest._

_The image was funny and mildly disturbing. Astaroth, like many demons, had maintained many guises over the years. A change of scenery sometimes helped with the tedium of the centuries. Currently he stood in a brooding 3 foot five inch form of a young, absolutely adorable (even for a demon), angelic looking little girl. Her strawberry blond curls were long, falling to her very slender waist, almost a halo of voluminous locks. The flickering light from the background played on the strawberry tint so that the coloring danced between brilliant shades of red, gold and an orange reminiscent of a magnificent setting sun. Her large almond shaped eyes were a lovely shade of brown, framed by a thick lacing of eyelashes. Her skin was pale and her lips were a small cupid's bow of deep pink. The almost porcelain doll preciousness of this child had once belonged to a young human child, of whose fate even Ruby couldn't guess at, whom she was sure had captured the hearts of anyone who laid eyes on her. _

"_Do you still wish to swallow your tongue, Maeva?" Maeva stayed silent. Funny, her tongue, lips and teeth were the only things she had allowed her to keep. She lifted another very thin, bone slicing sharp knife from her table lifting it to Maeva's mouth where she deftly removed her tongue, then her lips to the sound of her gurgling screams. When she finished she laid the knife down and reached for the small chisel and hammer. She slid the chisel under the gums holding one of her front teeth in place and hammered down and under, getting to the base were she chiseled away until the tooth popped free. She repeated the process thirty-one times placing down her tools when she was finished. Maeva sobbed and was mumbling unintelligibly to herself. She shifted her weight intentionally and like she wanted her to Maeva's eyes followed the movement. Now that she had Maeva's attention she walked back to the table with the tools of her trade splayed out and ran her fingers lightly over them._

"_You know, Maeva, there are a total of 206 bones and 32 teeth, 6 main orifices for men and seven for women in the adult body." She looked over her shoulder at the woman in question with a small smirk and palmed a random instrument off her table, walking over toward her. "I have personally heard the snap of each and every one of those bones, felt them fracture, splinter and break beneath my fingers." Maeva's eyes followed each move she made and Ruby felt the cruel, malicious smile she wore spread to her eyes, painting them unpleasant shades of pain and torment. "I have removed and violated parts of the human body you couldn't fathom." She was standing in front of the woman now and Maeva flinched when Ruby's palm landed next to her head and she lowered herself into a push up position above her. She had no eyelids, otherwise, Ruby was sure her eyes would be widened in panic. "You see Astaroth behind me?" She gestured vaguely over her shoulder and the woman's eyes followed immediately, flicking briefly back at him then locking right back onto Ruby. "With everything I just did to you do you want to know what the best part is?" A small gurgle escaped the woman. "With a sideways thought, he can undo it all and we are back to square one." She ran the sharp edge of the blade lightly across the exposed muscle of Maeva's collarbone who screamed a wet, pitifully high pitched, gurgling sound over and over as fast as she could draw in air. Ruby laughed and pulled back gesturing at Astaroth to work his magic. Suddenly flesh crawled back over all the vast, glistening expanse of muscle and Maeva was whole and unscathed once more. She still screamed, so loud that Ruby could not hear what Astaroth had just said. She leaned in and put just the tip of the blade she held in her fingers against the soft, pristine flesh of Maeva's throat. _

"_You can stop all that squealing right this second, or I take the preferred method and remove your larynx." Maeva was quiet with the exception of a whimper here and there. She turned around and faced him._

"_What was that, Starry? I couldn't quite make it out over all the screaming." His face slipped into a mask of irritation and boredom, __that small cupids bow thinning into a flat line, pulling a little off to the left side__._

"_I have told you endlessly not to call me that." __Those doe __eyes met hers before he continued. "Can you get the information from her or not?" She looked at him with a combination of annoyance and haughty pride._

"_There is not a single soul that has been unfortunate enough to land on my rack that hasn't given me what I want." His eyes roved over the scene before him, taking in the table with all her favorite implements spread out for easy access, the rack Maeva was strapped into and the skin-suit that was hanging from hooks. His eyes roved over her, then they seemed to be cataloging all the blood everywhere._

"_I believe you." __The __voice __that usually sounded so soft like the ghost of wind chimes on a summer breeze __was flat and something undefinable gleamed briefly in his eyes as he looked at the skin again. A smile spread across her face as she walked over to it and ran her hand over the dermis, slick with blood._

"_Are you into leather? I'm sure this would make for a lovely pair of pants." His lip curled and she looked back at what she was touching. "Once it has been clean and dried of course...__unless you would like to wear it as is.__" His eyes met her__s__ again and stayed there, __a glint of fascination, curiosity and something that looked strangely similar to a fearful respect. Those wide, wonderful eyes showed all too much about Astaroth. He normally maintained an insatiable boredom. She smiled to herself as she realized this wasn't the case when around her._

"_Tell me. Does he school all his students to be such sickeningly giddy, demented perverts?" His __small, child-like __voice was thickly laced with distaste. She was silent for a moment allowing his insults to set up a slow burn within her._

"_Tell me." She mimicked, walking to her toys and picking one up at random, turning toward him. "Is it common for a prince of hell to be a slovenly, arrogant bitch, lacking the balls to rule his supplicants properly?"_

"_Beware how you speak to me, girl. I am a prince and YOUR better." His voice was cold and demanding. She felt her eyebrows hitch high on her forehead and a wide grin spread across her face._

"_Oh?" She walked over to stand directly in front of him. He made a show of looking __up at her, eyes full of arrogance and pride, not daunted by the height difference._ _He did visibly jump__ when she grabbed his hand in hers, skin slick with blood against his clean, __porcelain__ skin, and placed the barbed whip __she had blindly picked up __in his palm. She turned her back on him and walked over to the table, spinning on her heel and placing her butt along its edge, folding her arms under her breasts. She cocked her head toward Maeva who had long since fallen silent, probably enjoying the reprieve and melodrama. He looked incredulously at her. __The image he presented of this small porcelain child standing in her knee length dress with ruffles along the bottom, collar and sleeves, shoes that looked almost like slippers and white stockings, holding a malicious implement of gore and pain was fucking hilarious. She choked back her laugh. _

"_Go on then." He looked down at the whip in his hand then back to her._

"_You cannot seriously be implying that I go over there and do your job." It was said as a statement and her eyebrows raised higher with the humor of the moment. _

"_You are my better." She paused for a moment then continued. "Ergo you should be able to get the information you want from her more efficiently than I." His face was hilariously incredulous as if he had never been treated this way, __doe eyes wide, eyebrows raised as if reaching for the oh so far off heavens__. "Besides," His eyes snapped up to meet hers, "A good leader never asks of those what he is not willing to do himself." Murderous thoughts glinted over __those innocent looking_ _orbs__ and she cocked her head to the side, challengingly. "You aren't too much of a coward to get results yourself, are you? That would be a shame." He glared at her then stepped forward and began his comical attempt at whipping the information out of Maeva. She stepped forward and grabbed his __thin, fragile __wrist when he was about to swing again._

"_Stop. You're sloppy. It's all in the wrist" I adjusted his __small hand on the__ grip on the whip and moved his arm in the motion i__t__ needed to follow. He glared at me again until I moved back and motioned for him to continue. He did and I couldn't help but to laugh __riotously, I just couldn't take it anymore__. That was the last straw he turned on me and tried to strike me with the whip which I easily blocked._

"_The only thing you're hurting is my ribs from laughing my ass off at your ignorance. Give me that." He threw it down at my feet and stepped back. _

"_I may not know the arts of your trade, girl, but never have I ever needed them." He laughed at the question I'm sure was on my face. "When you wield the power I do it isn't often you need to resort to more...physical measures." He said the word physical as if it were a filthy, socially unacceptable word._

She snapped out of her memory and sprung to her feet at the sound of a creaking floorboard.

**Attacker's POV**

She sheathed the knife in her hand in the holster on her hip and began to move around the table next to her, picking up two seemingly random weapons which happened to be a thin, extremely sharp knife the length of her forearm and a medium sized metal mallet. He watched her try to pin point where he was at, a look of utter concentration on her face, body taught with adrenaline. She was ready for whatever and the way she was moving said that whoever was stalking her was in for a world of pain. He smiled and began moving quickly through the shadows, avoiding the moonlight shining though the window. He took a moment to wonder why she would be sitting in such complete dark when the house she was squatting in was so isolated. Her eyes followed his movements only a second behind where he was actually at, but that second could cost her life. The thick, ink black darkness was uninterrupted except by the occasional ray of moonlight, making his game so much more fun. It must have become clear to her that she couldn't rely on her eyes so she closed them letting her ears and sense of motion track for her. A delighted smile crept over his face at the irony of the hunter being hunted.

He decided to get down to it and began moving forward. Instantly she dropped back into an offensive stance that told me she wasn't taking any nonsense. She was coiled and waiting to strike. She acted preemptively kicking her leg out in a high arc that connected high up on his ribs. He let out a small sound that reflected the pain of the contact and his surprise. He hadn't expected her to move so fast. It became clear to him that she was calculating the fight in her head. Probably trying to discern how tall he was to get a better grasp on the more critical spots to target. A smile crept over his face as he pulled his arm back and swung a mean hay-maker angled right at her face. She slipped his shot, ducking low to avoid it so he kicked his leg out, aiming low trying to catch her off guard and maybe get her to lose pace enough to land a shot. She dodged that too by moving lower to the ground and dipping to the side. He narrowly missed her, feeling the cloth of his jeans brush against the outer edge of her hip. He started to compensate for the failed kick by falling forward to grab her and over compensated, losing balance. She took advantage of his brief lapse in balance and threw her body backwards, landing on her hands, letting her momentum carry her into a text book perfect back flip. At the apex of the flip she extended her legs in a fast, powerful movement, her heels connecting hard with his chin and the underside of his jaw and he landed hard on the floor, back first.

He looked at her, a laugh caught at the back of his throat. She was a spectacle in battle mode as she landed back on her feet, immediately falling back into a defensive stance. She couldn't see him as he lithely pulled himself to his feet and charged her, but she heard him and her body tensed in preparation. Her arm shot out instinctively, a right hook that definitely would have smarted had it landed but he dropped low to the ground and extended his leg as he whirled in a circle, sweeping her legs out from under her. The air in her lungs escaped in a surprised whoosh of air right before his fist connected solidly against the soft flesh right under and in between her ribs where the diaphragm is. She gasped and proceeded to struggle for air, throwing her arms up to protect her face and neck taking several other hits to her ribs before she slashed out with the knife she had somehow managed to keep hold of. He immediately moved to dodge the blade and fell right into her trap. Being distracted by dodging the knife he didn't even see the mallet coming. It smashed into the right side of his face, connecting painfully with his cheekbone and snapping his head to the side. The force of the impact sent him reeling in a shallow dive right toward the floor. He had a second to contemplate whether or not he should stop all of this before he was being yanked to his feet by a very strong hand clamped on the back of his neck. When he was barely standing the hand disappeared and he tried to catch himself before he fell, still disoriented from the mallet, but didn't have the time as his ribs had a lovely meet and greet with a perfectly delivered kick from Ruby. He felt his feet briefly leave the ground and he must have spun with the impact because the same side where the kick landed crashed into a wooden frame and his head punched its way through a wall of glass. As he fell to the floor with a crunch on the broken glass he realized he had almost gone through the window. A moment later he felt the air whoosh by him and tried to curl into a ball to protect the vulnerable areas and was too slow. Her body landed in a crouch above him. She flattened him against the floor by shoving her hand against his throat and the other hand, the one holding the knife, reared above him in a viscous arc. He struggled beneath her and knew he wasn't going to make it so he did what he should have done earlier.

"Ruby-" His voice was nothing but a choked, garbled sound but her body froze.

For a few heartbeats he watched the myriad of emotions flow over her face before it settled on disbelief. The hand around his throat tightened and he was suddenly sitting, the moonlight shining on them. As he waited for reality to click for her he took her in. The deep dark of her curls were highlighted around the edges providing the illusion of a halo. Her fingers released and she shoved him back to land hard against the floor, surging to her feet and moving a good distance away from him where she paced in a half circle around him.

"What are you? Who are you?" Her voice was laced with anger.

"You know who and what I am." He absently rubbed his hand against the probably rapidly forming bruises on his throat.

"Stop _lying_!" The last word was laced with venom. She was livid. Not quite the reaction he'd been expecting.

"I'm not."

"Then why does Dean not know about you?" He felt his face fall into amused lines.

"What are you talking about? He does." She was silent for a minute then she responded.

"No he doesn't. I just talked to him two weeks ago and if he knew about you he would have told me. So, what are you?" My eyebrow raised and a smile spread across my face.

"You think after everything you put us through that Dean would ever be 100% honest and upfront with you. Why would he mention my existence to you? What reason would he have in sharing that piece of information?" She stayed silent. "He wouldn't. He has no reason to trust anything you say." She remained quiet, so quiet that if he didn't know she was there and wasn't staring right at her he would never have known. He couldn't even hear her breathing.

"He played me." It was a cold statement and he almost laughed. "Damn. I forgot how much I hated that." She seemed resigned yet resentful and he couldn't stop the laugh from bursting free.

"Let me guess. You went to Dean for help with something, probably another grand evil scheme and he didn't come clean with you about where I was?" She maintained her silence as he laughed more. "What'd you want, Ruby?" My question was answered with more silence. "How long have you been back? Better yet, how did you get back? Dean killed you."

"Yes I know he did!" More venom. "I'd like to know much the same about you." Her voice was laden with suspicion and intrigue. He sat there staring for a few seconds before pulling himself to his feet and shrugging his shoulders to attempt to loosen some of the tension there.

"How much do you know about what happened after Lucifer was freed?"

"I have a general idea of what happened but clearly my information was wrong. Last I heard you were still spending eternity locked in a box with two very pissed off brothers." He shook his head.

"No. I didn't actually spend much time there. I have been out for almost a year." She made some kind of choking noise that he ignored.

"Who or what sprung you?" he turned from gazing out the broken window to stare at her.

"I'd like to know the answer to that as well." He watched the surprise cascade over her face. Despite the shadows he could see her clearly.

"You don't know?" He shook his head then a brief silence fell between them before she continued with her questions.

"What have you been doing all this time?"

"Hunting, of course. What else would I be doing?"

"Why isn't Dean hunting with you then?" She sounded utterly confused and he sighed.

"Until little over a month ago he didn't even know I was alive. Had he, Lisa and Ben not been hunted by an elite form of Djinn he still wouldn't know." It took her a few moments to speak, probably blind sided by confusion and shock.

"Why? Why let him believe you to be dead?"

"Because he did what I asked him to do. He buckled down, gave up hunting and found a family. He was living a regular life. He hasn't done any hunting except for defending his family." he paused to let that sink in and then continued. "He's weak now. He has grown soft and is too vulnerable with Lisa and Ben as his every concern. He is better off continuing living as he is."

"He didn't want to hunt with you again?" He shook his head.

"I asked because I had to, not because I wanted to and still he said no. He told me he had given up hunting, that he couldn't do it anymore, that he didn't want to, he was tired of it." He shrugged. "So I left him to be the overly-paranoid family man he wants to be." She looked like someone had smacked her between the eyes with a hammer. "So, how about you?" She visibly shook off her thoughts and looked at him.

"What about me?" He looked at her as if she were being daft and she sighed and began pacing again. "It's hard to explain."

"Try." She stilled and looked at him then continued her pacing.

"Right before you jumped into the hole Lucifer sent out his powers/essence and gave it to another demon whom he tasked with bringing me back to life. And boom. Here I am." She seemed to be holding back.

"What aren't you telling me?" She shook her head.

"I don't know why he did that. I've been seeking answers as well."

"Why don't I believe you?"

"Because you aren't as gullible now as you once were. That's always a possibility." He felt anger coil up inside him and she must have seen it because she answered him, minus the sarcasm.

"Alright, look. About two weeks ago I did a ritual that allowed me to communicate with Lucifer but all he told me to do was to find Astaroth." Her eyes widened as she saw the recognition flit across my face. "You've seen him recently." It was a flat statement and his eyes widened with humor.

"Not recently, no." She paused a second then questions lit through her eyes.

"Will you tell me where you saw him so I can speak to him? He has some answers I need." He let out a short burst of laughter.

"I don't think he will be speaking to much of anyone, anymore." Her face fell and she looked suspicious and almost angry.

"What did you do, Sam?" He shrugged.

"I killed him." His voice was flat, nonchalant. Ruby's mouth fell open.

"Just like that?" She was pissed now.

"I take it you were familiar with him." Her mouth snapped shut and she took a step forward.

"Astaroth was many things, but he wasn't a slouch when it came to defending his life. What did he do to warrant you murdering him?"

"I don't need any other excuse barring his demonic nature." Her body went rigid with rage and her face flushed red, her fists curled into fists at her sides and she closed her eyes, just breathing for a second. He took a step forward and her eyes snapped open.

"Is it that easy for you to kill my kind." It sounded more like a statement than a question but he answered anyway.

"He was a demon, Ruby." His breath caught as her eyes damn near glowed with anger in the shadows.

"I don't remember you discriminating like this when you were buried between my thighs not that long ago." He didn't flinch or make a move. Instead he stood there smiling, remembering all the fun they had together, then he snapped out of it.

"Nope. Then again I don't recall you being remorseful about fucking me while digging a knife between my shoulder blades either."

Her fury was grand. Her chest heaving, face flushed a brilliant red, those light amber, burnt honey orbs aflame, the glorious length of her lithe body taught with tension and adrenaline. To his surprise he found his cock stiffening beneath the fly of his jeans only getting worse when she picked up her pacing again. She moved in that half circle around him from one side of the now shattered window frame in a wide arc around him to the other side, aerating her wonderfully singular scent, the smell of an autumn evening after it's rained that was solely hers. He watched her muscles expand and contract, watched the way her long legs folded as she walked, no not walked glided, almost as if stalking him. His eyes followed the luxurious length of curls as they fell from scalp to hips, mimicking the sway of her hips as they moved softly from left to right. It was crazy but the hard length of his cock and the way it twitched every time she glared over at him said more than anything how badly he still wanted her. She had a knack for picking delicious meat suits and he really wanted to get familiar with the new packaging. He couldn't trust her, that much was abundantly clear. He didn't need to forgive her or to love her, not that he could do either anyway. He did need to feel her naked body writhing beneath his, to feel the silky, wet warmth of her gliding around him, feel all that hair falling around him as she rode him. He shuddered with need, cock spasming beneath the fabric of his jeans. He had to have her.

**Ruby's POV**

She was livid. How dare he! He had the audacity to bash Astaroth for being a demon yet he wasn't above fucking her. Even now the fucker was over there sporting a boner hard enough to make a diamond weep in shame and he had the gall to dispute discrimination and her past betrayal. He had no idea how it had effected her, hiding all that she had from him. Now he had killed her one lead for whatever reason, putting her back at square one and wanted to fuck her. On top of him holding her while his brother stabbed her? He was a party to her murder and he wanted to fuck her? Oh no! Not this time. He walked a few steps toward her but she raised the hand with the blade in it up to point it at him.

"Keep your distance, Sam."

She could not allow him to ever figure out how he affected her. He would find a way to use it to his advantage...if he didn't just kill her, but the wood he was sporting told her that wasn't exactly what he had in mind. She could feel that warmth pool in her stomach, some of the tension leave her and she fought to maintain her anger and resentment toward him. A slow smile crept along his lips like he knew the affect he had then ran his thumbs along the waist band of his jeans. I snapped my eyes back up to his and told myself I would not look away from them again.

"Do you really want me to?" She swallowed then forced some resolve into her voice that she really didn't mean.

"Yes." It sounded convincing enough to her ears. Brownie point for her. He must not have believed her because he took another step. She took a defensive stance with the knife between the two of them.

"Are you fucking kidding me! I said stay back! Jeeze, Sam!" He stopped and cocked his head to the side with a wry smile. "What is the matter with you? You were just demon bashing and now..." She gestured vaguely at him with the knife. He shrugged and began moving toward her again. He was about three feet from her and her heart was racing. She did the only thing she could think to do, she lunged forward slightly and slashed at him. The blade skimmed over the flesh of his forearm and she leaped backwards to gain distance. He hissed at the contact and looked down at the thin slice on his arm, welling up with blood then back up at her.

His eyes flashed with that erotic gleam as he lifted his arm to his mouth and he ran his tongue slowly over the wound, ending it with a flick of his tongue. His eyes never left hers and a shiver ran down her spine. He took a step forward and she forced herself to take a step backward. He was incorrigible. They did that little dance for about thirty seconds before he got tired of it and lunged at her. She slashed out with the knife again but his arm shot out, connecting with her wrist, sending a sharp pain shooting through her hand and the knife clattering to the floor a few feet away. His hands found her wrists and he slammed her back against the wall that she hadn't known was there. Her back connected hard and the air whooshed out of her. He flattened his body to hers, shoved her legs apart so his hips were blocking any attack she could have made with her legs.

She writhed uselessly against him then stopped when she felt moisture beginning to pool where she wanted him most. It was futile to try to fight him off in the position she was in. She looked right where she thought his face might be and felt her heart racing, her chest heaving. The air she pulled into her lungs felt hot and heavy and she felt her traitorous body beginning to give in to him. She closed her eyes and slammed her head back against the wall trying to force some sense into her brain. She should have told him to get the fuck off her and find someone else to get his rocks off. She should have been fighting him tooth and nail but she had missed him so much. She wanted him so bad and his body felt so deliciously sublime against hers. His flesh was hot and firm where it pushed against hers and his breathing was ragged, his cock was firm and pushing against her. She realized he had lifted her up when he had shoved her back so that his body against hers was the only thing keeping her from falling to the floor.

"Sam-" Her voice sounded strangled and was getting husky from her need to have him.

No. She didn't want him. She tried telling herself that over and over again until his head dipped down and he tried to kiss her. She jerked her head to the side at the last moment to avoid his lips. Instead he just redirected and his lips found her neck. She bit her lip to keep from moaning as he licked, kissed and nibbled his way down to her collarbone. Once he reached the collarbone he ran a wet line with his tongue up her neck to her ear lobe where he pulled it between his lips and sucked on it gently grating it between his teeth. She involuntarily moved her head to the side giving him more access. He chuckled lightly and his mouth found the rapidly beating pulse in her neck and locked his mouth around it, running his tongue over it and sucking her flesh into his mouth when he gently bit down she just about broke. She tasted blood in her mouth and knew if she didn't stop biting her lip she'd bite it off. She was about to tell him to get off her when he suddenly sank his teeth into the soft flesh connecting neck and shoulder. She cried out and moaned when he relentlessly sucked her flesh into his mouth then sank his teeth in deeper. Her resolve shattered and she wrapped her legs around his hips, moving against him. She felt the wall sliding beneath her back, pushing her shirt up then heard Sam's knees hit the floor. His mouth left her neck and then they were whirling and her back slammed onto the floor, his cock pushed against her and his weight on her wrists was delicious. She arched up off the floor as he moved both of her wrists into one hand and his other began yanking and pulling at her clothes. He sat back on his knees, locking his free arm around her back so she came with him, straddling his lap.

He released her wrists and both hands slid her shirt up her arms. He removed the shirt and when she went to sink her hands into his hair he shoved both hands behind her back where he deftly used her shirt to tie them. She tested the restraints and moaned when her movements just tightened them. There was something so sexy about being tied up during sex but what it was in particular that made it sexy totally eluded her at the moment. Her whole upper body jerked as he yanked her bra off, breaking one of the straps and the clasp in the back. It fell to hang loosely behind her. She was nearly panting when he let her go and she fell back against the hard wood floor. Her shoulders took the impact but she paid no mind as he unhooked her legs from around his waist. She had enough time to lift her head, saving her face from smashing into the floor, before he was flipping her onto her stomach. In seconds her pants and underwear were gone and she was completely nude minus her binding. She needed to feel him inside her. She moaned when she felt his hands sliding up her thighs to her ass where he dug his fingers in then gently massaged. She spread her legs and was instantly gratified by feeling him move in closer between them. He suddenly slapped her ass, hard. She cried out and he did it again and again. Three hard smacks to each cheek. His hands were now on the inside of her thighs, spreading them further and then all contact ceased. A desperate noise left her throat and she heard him chuckle, felt his breath against the hot skin of her ass then she felt him flick his tongue against her tender skin. He traced his tongue in tantalizing patterns of cool relief across every inch of the flesh he had abused. Moans fell from her lips like the air filled her lungs and her clit throbbed viciously. Her body was writhing and she thought she was going to explode with anticipation and pleasure.

His hands wrapped around her hips and he jacked her lower body off the floor so that her chest, shoulders and knees were all that held her weight. Again he stopped touching her and she was about to scream in frustration when he suddenly bit the soft flesh of her inner thigh. He traced his teeth imprints with his tongue then repeated the process on the other thigh and pulled back. All she heard was their rapid breathing, and what sounded like a soft occasional dripping. Was their a leak in the cabin piping or roof somewhere. The she realized that was her. She was so wet she was dripping. She heard him growl and felt her body thrum and vibrate to the beat of her heart. She wanted to cry and scream at the same time from the fire burning through her. Tears actually slipped out of her eyes. Then she was screaming as he plunged inside her.

Oh god! He felt so amazing. He filled her up and then some slamming into her cervix at the apex of each thrust. He slid out of her to the point where only the tip of him remained inside and then slammed home. He kept this rhythm up for a few minutes and then switched suddenly to a fast, hard stroke that had her screaming her climax against the floor boards, back arching, dipping lower to the floor. She fought against her restraints but it was useless. She wanted to feel his flesh under her nails, taste it between her teeth, beneath her tongue.

Again he changed pace to a stroke that alternated between brushing over her G-spot and then plunging deeper to hit that sweet spot that made her cry out his name. She screamed her way through another orgasm and she felt the strength in her thighs just melt away. Sam grunted, hands tightening on her hips, then she was being flipped onto her side. He grabbed her leg and jerked it up onto his shoulder, straddling the other leg and plunging deep inside her, rocking her head back on her spine and arching her back. Sam moaned and his pace quickened and he slammed into her with almost bruising force. She came again, screaming his name and she felt his body tense a second before he exploded deep within her, hot jets of liquid coating her inside. He cried out, his head falling back, exposing his throat and deepened his strokes. His movements faltered a few times, powered by his pleasure he thrust one last time into her, fast and deep, in a way that revamped the dregs of her last orgasm and had her screaming again as his whole body vibrated and shook with the force of his orgasm.

He fell bonelessly onto the floor next to her when he finished and they both panted. Time held no meaning as they lay next to each other, recovering. Finally, he hefted his weight onto his hands and knees and he leaned over her, releasing her from her bindings. She couldn't care less about the tingling sensation in her hands as blood began to circulate again. He lay back beside her, neither touching the other and she fell into a deep, deep, dreamless, sexed out coma.

**A/N- I am my own editor so please excuse any grammatical errors you may have run across. The sex scene was inspired by a few rather delicious songs: Adam Lambert- For your Entertainment, Marilyn Manson- Tainted Love, Simon Curtis- Flesh, Rihanna- S&amp;M, and the Weeknd- Wicked Games. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please R&amp;R! See you next chapter. ;-D **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N- **Hey ya'll. I know it has been a reeeeeeally long while since the last update but we're back with a new chapter. Davros and I were a bit nostalgic for the classic Supernatural monster hunt. So this chapter is the first of a couple that are going to be kicking it old school. We hope you enjoy reading this one as much as we enjoyed writing it. Please R&amp;R and we will see you next chapter.

**Disclaimer- **Mild vulgar language

**Ruby's POV**

She woke up alone on the floor where Sam had left her. She rolled over, squinting through the late morning sunlight, searching for her lover. She didn't find him. The spot where he'd bonelessly fell not a handful of hours earlier was empty. She stretched her arm out, splaying her fingers where he should have been. She flopped over onto her back and heaved a great sigh of frustration, staring at the chalky, chipped holes in the plaster of the ceiling above her, fighting the urge to get up and look for him. She knew he was gone...again. She lay there for a few more minutes before hauling herself to her feet looking over the mess she'd made.

The demon she'd been interrogating was long dead, once scarlet blood now a dark, dull, coagulated brown, painting the floor with death and decay. The smell of too much raw, rotting meat was so thick she could almost taste it in the back of her throat. Ugh! She so didn't miss this part. She looked around and found her clothes, pulling them on, wincing slightly at the tugging pain in her wrists. She looked down at them to see ripe purple bruises, like unseemly bracelets, decorating her flesh. A grin spread across her lips as she recalled the nights events and she felt herself growing moist again. She shook off the thoughts then gathered her few possessions and started out to find Sam...again.

**··········**

**Dean's POV**

**Almost a day later**

**In Battle Creek, Michigan**

He was on his back stuck beneath the undercarriage of some shitty Honda Civic, painted a shitty shade of blue.

"Dan, hand me that wrench would you man?" He pointed to the wrench he was referring to knowing Dan wouldn't be able to see him but making the gesture out of habit. He heard nothing.

"Dan." Again no answer. "Dan! Dude come on. We still got a full work up to do on the damned Cherokee." He was greeted with more silence. He grumbled to himself and slid out from under the Civic.

"What the fu-" He stopped his rant short seeing the garage empty.

A normal man would have probably assumed everyone had simultaneously decided to step outside for a smoke break or they had all developed a serious case of the munchies and went on a group run to grab some grub without telling anyone. Not him. He slid into a crouch grabbing the nearest tool, which happened to be a socket wrench. Not the best weapon, but it was better than nothing. He crouch walked to the car next to him snatching up the crow bar propped against the passenger door, gently placing the wrench down. He was creeping around the car, staying low to the ground, trying to get a look out the main doors to the garage, heart racing, thinking he knew this would happen. It was only a matter of time.

"Dean."

He whirled, springing to his feet, heart in his throat, muscles tense and ready for combat, crowbar in full swing for a nice meet and greet with Castiel's face. Cass' hand firmly wrapped around Dean's wrist in mid-swing stopping him in his tracks, one eyebrow raised.

"Dammit, Cass!" He yanked his arm out of Cass' grip, throwing the crow bar to the ground angrily. "Wear a bell or something would ya! I told you to stop creeping up on me." He turned to face the baffled angel who shrugged, face falling back into peaceful lines.

"Sorry." Cass said in his gruff voice that implied he actually wasn't because he wasn't sure what he'd done wrong. He heaved an exasperated sigh then sat back on the hood of the Civic he had been working on. Cass looked around then locked his eyes back on Dean.

"Honest labor suits you." He nodded once with a small smile. "I think I like it." He had an odd tone to his voice that Dean didn't want to ponder. Dean scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Yeah. It comes with the normal life I've been trying to live. Which doesn't include angels popping in all the time and scaring the shit out of me, pissing all over my slice of apple pie." Cass raised one eyebrow. If he clued into anything he didn't show it. Instead he just took a few steps forward until he was standing maybe a foot and change in front of Dean.

"We have to talk." Dean eyed Cass up and down for a moment, eyebrows raised, then placed one palm in the center of the angel's chest pushing backward gently as he stood up and away from the car.

"Cass. We've talked about this whole personal space thing." Cass glanced down at Dean's hand on his chest, then looked down at the space between them, which was only as wide as the length of Dean's arm.

"Sorry." He took one step back then met Dean's eyes. "We have to talk." Dean smiled then turned around to face the Civic.

"Yeah. You've said that already." He grabbed his wrench up then frowned, turning back to face Cass. "Where is everybody?" Cass raised his eyebrows questioningly. "Dan, Rick, Patty? You know, my coworkers?" Cass looked unfazed by his question.

"You are referring to the men that also work on these machines." Dean nodded.

"Yeah. That's what a coworker is, Cass." The angel nodded.

"I told them that they should take a break." Dean's eyebrows raised.

"Oh, you did, did you?" His voice was thick with sarcasm.

"Yes. They are probably out getting refreshments." Dean scoffed and rolled his eyes then turned back to the Civic. They were probably getting some beers, which he now desperately wanted.

"Dean, we have-" Dean raised a hand up in the universal sign to stop and nodded his head.

"Yeah, I know, Cass. We 'have to talk'." He turned and sat down on his slider, laying back. "So talk." He finished right before sliding back underneath the car. He could almost feel the angel looking at the only parts of him still exposed from beneath the car, which happened to be the lower half of his body from the hips down. He fought the urge to wriggle in discomfort and instead put it out of his mind. It was Cass, so what if the guy was staring, he didn't mean anything by it.

"Have you been paying attention to the news? I understand this is a sensation in your human media." He frowned.

"There are a lot of things on the news, Cass. You're gonna have to be a little more specific."

"The bodies that have been strewn across the U.S. None of your human officials have caught onto a pattern yet because the murders seem to have no specific modus operandi." Dean blinked and shook his head.

"No specific _what_?"

"Mod-" He stopped himself. "M.O. There is no particular way the victims are chosen or killed. There is seemingly no pattern, other than the fact that all the victims were found with traces of Sulfur in their blood." That last piqued his interest.

"So someone is out there ganking demons. So what?"

"Two someones by my count and I don't think they are working together."

"Uh huh. And what brought you to this grand deduction, Sherlock?" The pop culture reference was lost on him, as always.

"There are two trails of bodies. Two entirely different ways of killing."  
"Again. How do you figure that?"

"Someone has been indiscriminately capturing demons and brutally, rather bloodily torturing them, taking anywhere between one and five victims per town, so far, with no sexual preferance. I can personally tell you, the scenes are gory and whoever is leaving the bodies knows what they are doing."

"They obviously don't know enough to get rid of the bodies."

"Or they simply do not care if the bodies are found." Dean nodded his head and slid out from underneath the car, leaning back against the passenger side door. He was definitely interested now.

"Okay. So the police have had to of clued into that particular trail because that sounds like an M.O. to me." Cass nodded his head.

"They have been trying to keep it out of the media as much as possible." Dean nodded again.

"Understandable."

"The other trail is more baffling, enough so that the police have yet to connect the murders. There are only three things the murders have in common; the first being the sulfur in the blood, the second being that they were all female. There is no way for them to know that the sulfur equates their victims to demons." He paused and shuffled his feet.

"Yeah, okay. What's the third?" Dean asked, eyebrows raised.

"According to all the medical examiners reports they all died directly after intercourse." His eyebrows reached for the heavens.

"You are talking about the Black Widow Killer?" Cass nodded. "And what do you mean according to the medical examiner's report? Haven't you been working the case?"

"That is the name they refer to this murderer as, yes." Cass locked eyes with Dean. "I have been on a few of the scenes but I have other very urgent issues to attend to that command a lot of my attention." Dean cocked his head to the side.

"How did you get so interested in this?"

"Bobby informed me of it since he could not reach you and Sam fell off the grid."

"What do you mean Sam fell off the grid?" Cass locked eyes with him again.

"I mean I cannot find him and though I asked Bobby to keep an eye out for him, he hasn't been caught on camera anywhere for over three weeks. Coincidentally, that was a week after the bodies began popping up." Dean thought about it for a minute.

"So there are two murderers, one clearly searching for something and the other is completely nuts. What does that have to do with me." Cass paced a couple steps then stopped.

"I figure you are going to want to find out who or what is committing these crimes. If it is a hunter, you are going to want to put them in their place before they call down a lot of unwanted attention. If it is a demon or something else, you might want to figure out exactly what they are searching so hard for." Dean stood up and turned his back to the angel, throwing his wrench down and walking over to the fridge on the far wall to grab his water.

"No. Its none of my business. You and Bobby can find another hunter to put on the case."

"Since when is something like this none of your business?"

"Since I gave up hunting." Dean's voice was flat and harsh. "You are already working the case and it sounds like you are doing fine without me. What could be commanding so much of your attention that something like this isn't as important to you." Cass frowned looking slightly pissed as Dean turned back to the fridge pulling the door open.

"Then I guess, since this is none of your business, you won't care that Sam is our most likely suspect for the Black Widow Killer." Dean froze in the act of putting his water bottle back in the fridge. "I guess I will go tell Bobby that we will have to figure this out on our own." Dean whirled to see Cass walking toward the main doors to the garage, tan trench coat flapping behind him. Panic fluttered through him.

"Cass?" The angel stopped.

"You want to know what we know now?" He asked over his shoulder, giving Dean a profile view of his face. He swallowed a few times before nodding his head. Dean couldn't see Sam doing something like this but if he _was_ responsible Dean knew he had to stop him, had to figure out what was so wrong with his brother. Then, he would have to save him.

**··········**

**Sam's POV**

He was sitting in a diner, like the thousands of others he had been to and seen, somewhere in the central U.S. His waitress was a slightly overweight teen girl. Her eyes were large pools of a dull blue, hair some shade between brown and auburn pulled back in a tight ponytail with small wisps falling free here and there. Her face was pretty in that unremarkable way that a lot of young girls were, until she smiled. She had a brilliant smile, perfectly white, straight teeth hidden behind lips that were very pink and full and he could tell she was not wearing lip stick like most girls her age were nowadays. Her smile was genuine, lighting up her eyes so that she suddenly looked beautiful. He offered her a smile in return because that was what you were supposed to do when someone smiled at you. She flushed a deep shade of red and coyly looked down as she placed his salad in front of him.

"Can I get you anything else?" she asked in a sweet voice, fiddling with the pocket on her apron, eyes glancing up to meet his before darting back down, blush growing more intense. "More pop?" He shook his head.

"No. I'm good for now." He caught her eyes and smiled again.

She smiled brilliantly, breath hitching a little, face flushing again before she turned away and hurriedly returned behind the counter, leaning over the counter to the kitchen whispering to the cook. He heard her giggle and shook his head. She was way too young for him, and too innocent, untainted and not at all his type as of late. Yet he found himself watching her grab a plate from the counter and turn to take it to a table over in the corner. When she turned he caught her eyes and she flushed, hand going up to her hair resting on her neck, looking down with a lovely smile. Someone slid into the seat across from him. He pulled his eyes away from the young girl and was about to tell the person that he wasn't interested then stopped, getting caught up in the burnt honey eyes before him.

"Done flirting with the jail bait?" She smiled and didn't really sound offended like he imagined she would.

"What are you doing here, Ruby?" Her smile grew as she leaned forward and plucked a crouton from his salad, popping it between her lips, chewing slowly. He looked around to see his waitress watching them, looking kind of aggravated, but otherwise they had attracted no attention.

"I followed you, silly."

"I got that. Why?" She shrugged.

"You know it really does a number to a girls self esteem when she wakes up alone after a night of wicked games." He scoffed.

"Are you trying to tell me I hurt your feelings?" She shrugged and he chuckled lightly. "Oh please." She looked at him blankly. "I can't trust you enough to truly sleep beside you. Of course I left." He shrugged, reaching for the cup of vinaigrette he'd ordered with his salad. "Besides I had more important things to do."

Her face twisted into something unpleasant as she stared at him in silence for a few moments. He pretended to ignore her, stirring his salad, fighting off the smile trying to spread across his lips at the growing agitation he felt from her. He over-exaggeratedly stabbed at his salad a few times, feeling the crisp leaves of lettuce crunch beneath his efforts and looked at her as he raised the fork to his lips. He enjoyed the fury he saw in her eyes. She stared at him for a handful of heart beats before looking away. He smiled in satisfaction and simply watched her as he ate his salad. She suddenly turned her head to look back at him, a wry smile spread across her lips, all signs of the rage that had been there only moments before replaced with mild amusement. He fought the urge to frown.

"You're puppy approaches." Her voice lilted with mockery when she called the girl puppy. He had time to look up and see the girl walking up to the table but was still fighting the urge to frown as she got to them. The girl looked to him with that wonderful smile.

"Can I get your friend anything?" The girl never really addressed Ruby, only him.

"Why don't you ask his _friend_ what she wants directly instead of him." It was a flat, emotionless statement that showed the insult had not slipped past her notice. He watched the girls cheeks flush scarlet with some emotion, he was betting embarrassment. She smiled beautifully in a way that left her eyes untouched unlike the one she'd offered him earlier as she turned to Ruby, pencil and pad of paper in hand. Ruby's face never changed as the girl finally paid attention to her.

"What can I do ya for?" Ruby simply stared at the girl for a moment too long, long enough to make the girl shift her weight in discomfort before a wide smile spread across her face.

"I'll take an order of fries and a Pepsi."

The girl didn't bother writing Ruby's order down or saying anything else she just went to walk away. Ruby reached out and grabbed the girl's wrist gently, holding it in a three fingered grip. The girl looked down at where Ruby touched her then up at the dazzling smile Ruby offered her that seemed to be implying pure, honest-to-god innocence.

"Hold the spit." She winked at the girl who jerked her arm free and shoved her pad and pen in her apron pocket.

"Thanks, puppy." Ruby called over her shoulder.

Tension zinged through the girl as she froze mid-step for a fraction of a moment, making him wonder what she might do, before she moved in tight, clipped motions behind the counter. He watched the pissed waitress busy herself behind the counter before looking back at Ruby who was watching him watch her.

"Was it absolutely necessary for you to bait her?"

She stared blankly at me for a moment before a slow smile crept across her face until she was grinning and her shoulders were shaking. He raised his eyebrows in curiosity, which was the proverbial straw that broke the camels back. She laughed, that loud, full and throaty laugh that turns your head to find who it belongs to. Something jerked low within him at that sound and he saw their waitress staring at Ruby, face emotionless, eyes green with envy. He looked back at Ruby to see her positively glowing with laughter, eyes shiny, rich laughter softening, smile joyous. She was gorgeous like this. He had to consciously remind himself to stop staring and looked back down at his forgotten salad, stabbing at it absently. Silence, tinged with laughter, fell between them.

"Yes." Ruby finally said. He looked up at her, chewing a fork full of salad.

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, it was necessary to bait her."

"Why?" She cocked her head and smiled but didn't answer the question. He shrugged and went back to his salad. He looked up as the waitress approached the table again carrying a small plate of fries and a glass of soda. She slid the plate in front of Ruby as if she couldn't bare to get close enough to her to set it where it should go.

"Can I get ketchup?"

"Sure." The girl mumbled before setting the soda on the table somewhere between Ruby and Sam. Ruby sat there staring at her fries as if she could discern each individual ingredient. The girl came back, glass ketchup bottle in hand.

"You want anything else for your fries?" Ruby smiled at her and took the bottle from her making sure their fingers touched. He gave the girl points, she never gave ground. She did pull her hand away and grab the edges of her apron, balling her hands in it.

"No. But how about some ice with this soda?" The girl just stared at her for a moment then waltzed off in silence. He stared at Ruby wondering why the hell she was making such a fuss. She never touched the ketchup or fries. The waitress returned a few seconds later and plunked the cup on the table directly in front of Ruby so hard the salt and pepper shakers rattled and soda sploshed down the sides onto her hand, still around the glass as she stared at Ruby, who looked up at the girl with a charming smile.

"Thanks!" She sounded too cheerful.

"Your welcome." The words were harmless enough but the tone said fuck you. She stared into Ruby's eyes as she spoke then pulled back and put a smile on her face, glancing at the both of us before locking her eyes on me.

"Now, If there is anything else you need don't hesitate to call me." She smiled like she meant it and shot Ruby an icy glare before turning on her heel and walking away. Ruby raised an eyebrow, smiling like a loon as she watched the girl strut away. Her eyes snapped to me.

"Oh, I like. You should definitely leave her a generous tip." He raised his eyebrows and put his fork down.

"I wasn't aware you were into girls." She laughed at that, throwing back her head.

"Oh, there is a lot of things you don't know about me, Sam." Her face sobered. "I've had my fair share of women." She said it like she'd hurt someone if they asked for more details, then she smiled again popping one fry into her mouth. "I just prefer poles to holes." He knew there was more to the story but didn't care enough to ask more.

"That wasn't what I was talking about anyway." He nodded, knowing exactly what she liked about the waitress. She was a cold rage, the most dangerous kind. He looked at Ruby who was watching him again.

"Go."

"What?" She cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"Just leave, Ruby." She frowned for a moment.

"You don't even know why I'm here." He shrugged.

"I don't care." He gestured vaguely to the door. Anger slid across her eyes, there and gone. She raised her eyebrows.

"Look at you, Sam. Love 'em and leave 'em. Hell really changed you." He shook his head.

"What we shared wasn't love. We fucked. That's it. Now leave." Again that brief flash of anger and then she was smiling like she knew something he wanted to know. She shrugged and popped another fry into her mouth.

"Okay." She stood up and stretched, grabbing another fry before leaning over just enough that the ample cleavage exposed by her low cut camisole was incredibly distracting. "Just so you know. There is a job in this town."

She smiled before standing up and sauntering out of the diner. He watched the waitress glare at Ruby who blew the girl a kiss. As the door closed behind Ruby the girl flipped her off. He glared after her, trying to force himself to stay in the seat. No information she had was worth feeding into her bullshit. He managed to stay in the seat for a whole thirty seconds before he stood up with a growl, dug in his pocket and threw his money, a generous amount, down on the table. The waitress, who had been working her way over to him, stopped in her tracks, smile fading as he stiff armed the door to follow after Ruby. He tried to console himself with the thought that he wasn't going after her for just the job info. He wanted to know what she had talked to Dean about. Why hadn't Dean bothered to tell him about her visit?

"Thought that would catch your attention." He turned to see her posted against the wall of the diner, thumbs hooked in the pockets of her jeans. He walked over to stand about five feet back from her.

"What do you know?" She smiled and he shook his head. "No games, Ruby. I don't have patience for your shit. Just tell me what you know." The smile faded from her face and she seemed to be contemplating something. She stood up off the wall, face serious.

"Alright. But I want something for it." Of course she did.

"What?" She moved a few steps closer.

"I'll tell you everything that I know on the case but I get to hunt with you." He felt his eyebrows reach for the heavens.

"Why? Do you have some kind of personal stake in this, a personal vendetta maybe?" She just stared blankly at him.

"My reasons are my own." He stared at her. "Over one hundred and fifty people have gone missing in this town in the past fifty years. You can do this without my help and it will take you longer, risking more lives. Either way you know my stipulation."

Was it worth it? He knew he couldn't trust her as far as he could throw his car. Their history was long and convoluted as fuck. He didn't care if he got the information from her now or twenty years from now, it really made no never-mind to him. Her info stood a 50/50 chance of being reliable anyway. It wasn't her info on the case he wanted...it was what she and Dean were keeping from him. Whatever got Dean to keep their meeting secret, whatever made him trust her enough to work with her again was worth getting. He let his eyes roam slowly over her body from the roots of her hair to the tip of her boots. She had assets that was for sure. She was smart, well skilled in combat, capable and very...female. Last night had shown that she was still more than susceptible to the draw of his body. A partnership between the two of them had its advantages.

"Fine." Some tension he hadn't seen left her shoulders. He stepped forward until he was a breath away from her, forcing her to crane her neck to look up at him. "The first sign of betrayal, no matter how small, the very second you become more a problem than an asset..." He paused making sure his eyes reflected the ambivalence he felt. "I will kill you. I don't care whether you live or die. You're only as valuable to me as the services you provide." He watched her swallow before she nodded. "We understand each other?" She nodded a little too fast, caught herself and stopped.

"Yes." He nodded.

"Good." He stepped back and turned around, digging his car keys out of his pants. "Let's get to work."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N- **Greetings again ladies and gents! We're so happy to have this chapter ready for you so soon. Hopefully we will be able to regularly supply you with chapters now. This is a long one so we hope you enjoy! Okay, without further ado, on with the monster hunt.

**Disclaimer- **Vulgar language, Graphic violence, minor sexual content

**Ruby's POV**

She paced, trailing the same path she had been burning into the floor for the past forty-five minutes. Sam had an arsenal of blades of varying kinds splayed in a line beside the bed where he sat sharpening each one individually. She had to admit how impressed she was at the range of his arsenal. He had everything from an athame to a great-sword that was almost as long as she was tall. When she had originally seen the huge blade she'd laughed because no one could be proficient with such an unwieldy sword as that. She'd asked him what use he could possibly have for something so ridiculous. He'd simply turned a chillingly knowing look to her and given her a very cryptic answer that implied, more than the guesswork response, that he had used and could wield it. She had shivered and wondered how her Sam knew how to use a sword, period, let alone a great-sword, which as far as she knew had died with Arthur and his knights. She both loved and hated how enigmatic he still was to her, despite everything they had been through. The mystery was sexy but the very real danger he was to her livelihood added the spice of fear to their complicated relationship that made her want him so much more.

Currently he was lavishing a lot of affection on a scimitar. She stopped, crossing her arms across her chest, propping her butt against the table while she watched Sam. The blade curved wickedly, starting small at the hilt and getting broad enough at the tip that she could probably splay her hand against the flat of it and barely touch the edges. She hadn't seen a scimitar in so very long.

"Where did you get that?" She asked taking in the hilt, smoothed down to a pearl-like smoothness from being held by many hands.

The metal of the blade showed scratches and dings, the scars of many battles. It was old and as she stared at it she shivered, feeling the vibe of death emanate off of it. Whatever had used it last had left its mark. Sam looked up at her then back down at the blade stretched across his lap.

"Off the corpse of a Daeva I killed in Maryland a while back." His voice was flat. She felt the surprise wash over her face. Daevas were monsters of Persian mythology condemned as "false gods".

"You killed a Daeva? I thought the last one sighted was around the border of Poland in 1942?"

"Yes and yes." The grating zing of the sharpening stone along the long length of the scimitar punctuated his sentence. "Until one surfaced in Maryland." He seemed to have no idea how much of an accomplishment killing a Daeva was, then again, the Winchesters had killed gods, what was a wannabe to that. She let it go, clearing her throat and getting back to the case at hand.

"So we know that over one hundred fifty men have disappeared in this town in the last half century, all of them exsanguinated."

"Those are only the ones that were found." She frowned but didn't correct him.

"Any ideas."

"I know what it is." Her eyebrows reached for the heavens and she waited for him to tell her. When he didn't her skin damn near boiled with irritation.

"Care to share with the class?" Her voice reflected only a bare minimum of her irritation. He looked up at her through his eye lashes then back down at the scimitar, never breaking rhythm.

"It's an arachne." She stopped cold. Well, that made sense. She nodded.

"So we are looking for a female arachne." He smiled slightly.

"Or a gay male." She rolled her eyes and fought the urge to fake laugh and call him a smart ass.

He suddenly stood, falling into a defensive stance, one arm held in front of his chest ready for anything while he twirled the sword one handed in a blur of experience and dexterity she hadn't known he'd possessed until today. He stopped and critically looked over the blade before making a small noise of content, sheathing the sword with an expert smoothness that made her catch her breath from both fear and arousal. That display had been breathtakingly sexy. She shook it off right before he looked at her.

"Time to go out on the town." His lips quirked into a devilish smile that she couldn't resist responding to with one of her own. Let the hunt begin.

**··········**

**Dean's POV**

"Alright. Thanks, Morton. Just do me a favor and keep an ear open for me."

"An ear and an eye, as often as I can spare it." He nodded his head, pinching the bridge of his nose in an attempt to fight off the massive head ache he felt coming on.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Stay frosty, brother." He made some noise suggesting the same thing and then the dial tone was buzzing in his ear.

He slammed his phone against the desk top in agitation. For the past three days he and Bobby had been tearing their hair out trying to find Sam, exhausting every technological method they could find. Finally, Dean had asked Bobby if he'd browsed the hunter network for information. When the answer had been no he had thought they'd hit pay-dirt. Still nothing. How hard could it be to find a six foot four giant with long hair? Apparently pretty damn hard. Somehow his brother had managed to go ghost on everyone's radar, even the angels. His heart skipped inside his chest. Was Sam even still alive? He felt a liquid heat burn across his eyes a second before his vision blurred. He angrily swiped the tears away and stood up to begin pacing from wall to wall in front of the desk. If Sam was alive...if? His heart hurt at the "if" but it was a very real possibility at this point. He laughed softly to himself and it sounded sad. How many times was he going to have to lose his brother before his heart would stop breaking? Answer; until it was fractured into pieces too small to break and ground to dust. He shook off the feelings of self pity trying to consume him and focused.

If Sam wasn't dead there were only two other options he could think of. The first being that something either very powerful or very smart had him held captive, which took him out of the running for TBWK suspects. The other was that he didn't want to be found and was making damned sure he stayed lost, which had some rather unpleasant images running through his head. He turned around to pace back and nearly jumped out of his skin. Castiel was so close that their chests bumped as his hands grabbed onto Dean's shoulders to steady him.

"Dammit, Cass!"

He shrugged his shoulders violently and the angel's hands dropped away from him. He closed his eyes and just breathed for a few moments trying to swallow his heart. When he opened his eyes Cass was staring at him very patiently, as if he could wait forever, which technically he could if his patience didn't fail him first. He looked into Cass' so blue eyes, noticing the thick frame of eyelashes making the already bright blue seem bluer. His heart did a little flip and then he noticed again how close they were and took one large step backwards, his back bumping into the built in bookshelf lining the wall of the office. Cass reached his hand out to me, frowning. The spots where the angel's hands had rested on his shoulders seemed oddly warm, as if Cass were still touching him and some part of him wanted Cass to close the distance between them again and...

He quite physically shook himself out of whatever the hell type of thoughts were trying to set up shop in his head and ran a hand down his face trying to scrub the remnants away. The stubble on his face scraped his palms and he pulled them away, staring at them as if expecting to see the beginning of his beard lining his hands. He wiped his hands on his pants as he looked up at Cass.

"Sorry, Cass. I'm a little out of it. What do ya got for me?" He couldn't help the little note of hope on the last. Cass turned around and walked over to stand in front of the bookshelf parallel to the one Dean's back was against.

"Nothing." His shoulders slumped as the hope that had been holding them up fled. Cass turned to face him, eyes as sad as he felt.

"Dean, if we can't find him we must assume the worst." His eyes narrowed.

"And what is the worst that we have to assume?" He put a lot of emphasis on "assume". Cass looked at him as if Dean knew what he was going to say but he'd humor him anyway.

"Sam is either someone's prisoner, dead or..."

"Our bad guy." He finished. The angel nodded in agreement. Cass' words echoed his earlier thoughts making him flinch.

"Which is the worst option, Cass?" The angel stared at him for a few moments then turned back to face the books. "Someone went to a hell of a lot of trouble to get him out of the box. It had to of been for a reason. Whoever or whatever it was wouldn't put in that much effort to see it wasted, so he can't be dead right?" Cass was so silent for so long that if he wasn't staring at the angel he'd never know he was there.

"Cass?"

"I don't know, Dean." There was something in his voice, something Dean had never heard before and couldn't quite put his finger on. A thick silence fell between the two of them.

"I got the word out on the hunter network to keep an eye out for Sam." Cass nodded but it was a hollow gesture as if all of this were just posturing to avoid the answer that was right in front of our faces.

Things were pretty fucking grim when the angel...our angel was giving up. He sighed. _Where are you, Sam?_

**··········**

**Sam's POV**

He walked into the small mid-west bar with Ruby behind him. He stopped just inside the doorway and looked around at the very nice wood working. The whole place was wood. The walls were made of actual lumber since the bar was just a double wide cabin outfitted for drinking and fun. The bar was a long L of wood, varnished so lovingly he could see the shelves of liquor behind reflected on it. The floor was high quality wood, he was betting mahogany from the rich shades of brown, red and beige interwoven beneath the wooden legs of the tables and chairs. Their was a medium size stage occupying most of the corner on the far side of the bar, also wood. Underneath the smell of beer and alcohol was a faint citrus smell, probably from all the wood cleaner used to keep the place up. As far as bars went, this one was lovely.

"Sam. Pain but not a window pane." He looked over his shoulder at her. She offered him a sweet smile. "Why don't you move that cute ass of yours out of the way so these gentlemen can get through." It wasn't a question.

He raised his eyebrows as he moved forward enough to step off to the left side of the doorway. She hadn't lied. As soon as they were out of the way three guys came through the door wearing jeans and varying colored button-downs. Two of the three glanced briefly at him as they passed, the other one was staring intently at Ruby's ass as she moved forward confidently, leaving him standing by the door.

Something flared through him as he clocked the asshole in the blue plaid mugging Ruby's ass. He felt the urge to paint the mahogany in shades of cherry using blue plaid's face as the brush. He shrugged off the odd feeling and followed, knowing he'd be seeing blue plaid again. That thought made the skin between his shoulder blades twitch and tense up. Ruby had sat down at a table close to both the bar and stage. He pulled out a chair that put his back to the wall between stage and bar and left only one seat between him and her. He rolled his shoulders trying to force the anger to roll off him. Anger? Why was he mad? So what if someone else had noticed Ruby's luscious ass, it was pretty hard to miss.

"Sam? Did you hear anything I just said?" The last was said with a lilt that implied she already knew the answer.

"No." He really hadn't even known she was speaking. She rolled her eyes and sighed slightly.

"Never mind." Her voice was bland and she looked away to survey the room.

He stared at her for a handful of heartbeats trying to figure out if he cared enough to ask her what she had said. He decided that if she didn't care enough to repeat it, it must not be important enough. He shrugged then pulled a smile onto his face as their waitress approached. She looked him over in a manner that told him she was aware of him but wasn't impressed, smiled as she pulled out a small pad and a pen then turned her attention to Ruby. Ruby offered the woman a small smile.

"What can I do for ya?" His eyebrows arched high on his head. The question was innocent enough but the tone wasn't. The double entendre was thick enough to walk on. Ruby didn't miss a beat, smile going from pleasant to brilliant in the blink of an eye.

"What would you suggest?" The woman's smile got brighter and she shifted her weight, straightening her shoulders a little.

"Michelle, our bartender, makes a mean hurricane. But if you want to get a little more risky her leg spreader generally gives just what it promises."

_Risky_ was pronounced more like _risque _and he nearly choked on his tongue trying to resist asking what a leg spreader was. The waitress flicked her eyes over to Sam as an almost question then back to Ruby, who laughed a rich sound that rolled down the spine and turned heads, literally. The waitress took a small breath and held it. Ruby leaned forward, eyes only for the waitress, completely ignoring the implication the woman had made about him and Ruby.

"I'll take you up on your leg spreader offer..." She made a show of glancing at their waitresses very well stacked chest, "Eve." She smiled devilishly, the irony was not lost on him either, before flicking her eyes up to meet Eve's. Eve swallowed, nodded and seemed to be turning around before she remembered him. She turned back around and flushed a deep shade of red that was almost endearing.

"Sorry, I'm a little out of it." He frowned. After that display, he couldn't imagine why. "What can I get-"

"I'll take a rum and coke." He cut her off impatiently.

She stood a little straighter, squaring her shoulders a little, not liking his rudeness. He couldn't find a single fuck to give about her hurt feelings. After a moment she nodded and turned on her heel, walking away to get their drinks. He stared at Ruby who was in fact watching Eve walk away with an appreciative look on her face. That unpleasant something flared inside him again. Ruby looked away from her eye candy to go back to scanning the bar.

"Do you even know what is in the drink you ordered?" She glanced at him then went back to scanning.

"It doesn't matter." He sat a little straighter. Why didn't it matter? It should. She'd just ordered it for flirting purposes. Something nasty twisted through him.

"I thought you prefer 'poles to holes'?" She didn't even flinch at having her words thrown so crudely back at her.

"I do. But that doesn't mean I can't appreciate a beautiful woman, especially when she's throwing herself at me so freely." He fought the urge to shift around in irritation. "Besides, flirting loosens the lips. If they like you they talk more freely." She locked her eyes firmly on his. "You know this." Her tone implied that it was simply professional making him feel stupid for half a second. He nodded. He did know that. He'd done it enough himself. She smirked then directed a more devilish version at Eve who had just appeared with our drinks.

"Here you are." She placed our drinks down and then a straw next to Ruby's glass but he couldn't help but to notice he didn't merit one. A petty form of vengeance. Or maybe she assumed he didn't want one because most men didn't use straws and he was the one being petty. He sneered at his own thoughts and shoved them away.

"At seven we have a live performer coming in. I hope you'll stay." She paused briefly and then felt the need to add, "For the performance of course." Ruby smiled brilliantly.

"Of course." Eve smiled coyly and winked before leaving. He pretended he didn't just notice their exchange. Ruby took a small sip of her drink making an appreciative noise before taking a larger drink.

"So, almost two days of searching around for signs of an arachne to no avail. I think it is safe to say that what we are searching for isn't an arachne."

"Yes it is." She raised her eyebrows at his confident declaration.

"Oh? And how do you know that for sure when we have no evidence to support your little theory, which is exactly what it is until proven otherwise." He felt his irritation build again.

"I've hunted arachne before."

"You want a cookie?" She said it in a manner similar to how you'd hear people talking to small children or pets which pissed him off.

"It is an arachne." Only the barest hint of his anger threaded his words.

"Must I repeat myself? Just because you've hunted arachne before does not mean that is what we are hunting now."

"The M.O. is the same."

"Yeah and how many monsters have similar hunting habits, preferred habitats, etc.? Figuring out your monster is tied to the lunar cycle still leaves you with half a dozen creatures, at least, as your potential bad guy." She had proven her point and the fact that she was right got under his skin. Why was he so irritated with her right now?

"If not an arachne then what do _you _think it is?" She shrugged, taking another sip of her drink.

"I don't know."

"Then what was your point?" She glared at him like she was indulging a child.

"My point is that we are chasing our fucking tails, operating off your half-cocked assumptions." The anger in her voice reflected his own.

"This isn't the first monster I've hunted, Ruby." She leaned as far as she could across the table.

"Then stop fucking acting like it." The words were a hiss of anger.

She sat back and looked away from him, taking a large swig off her drink. He too took a large drink to drown the sour taste at the back of his throat. He felt very violent at that moment. Just then our waitress walked up to the stage, hopping one handed up onto it, fiddling with the microphone. A few seconds later a screech sounded through the room announcing that the microphone was on followed by her tapping it a few times for extra measure. She turned to face the crowd with a brilliant smile on her face.

"Good evening, ya'll!" Waitress and MC. Who'd of thunk it. "Okay so most of ya'll know tonight's performer." The patrons, now packed tight in the small bar, whooped and hollered. Eve laughed before making a simmer down motion with her hands. The hum in the bar fell to a murmur. "She needs no introduction but deserves one nonetheless. She is the Mistress of mysticism, the pacifier of fools-" a wave of chuckling and light laughter swept through the crowd, "The beauty of Tortuga-" appreciative noises now from the men and even some women, "The lady of lullabies. Come to us, for almost five years now, all the way from Hawaii, you all know her as Lootie. Please help me welcome her to our stage once again." The crowd already began hooting and hollering. "Give it up for, Himiko!" Eve nearly screamed the last over the noise and the crowd exploded, men and women stood up to put their whole bodies into pumping their fists and applauding, cupping hands around mouths to emphasize their screams. You'd think Cher or Ozzy was going to walk out on the stage.

From the crowd and onto the stage stepped a woman about five foot nine. The first thing he noticed about her was the hair. Her hair was so dark it shone with blue and purple highlights as she walked. It was twisted up high of her head, held in place with a pair of chopsticks so that it looked like if you pulled them out all her hair would cascade free. One thin braid came out the center of the twist of hair to trail in a long line down her back, the end bobbing against the top of her butt. Somehow it looked like there was a fan of hair like a crown set against her head. She had twisted her hair so that she got both the crown and tail effect. He was fascinated by it. When she got to the microphone she turned to face him and he stopped breathing. Her so pale skin was highlighted by her bangs cut long and swept off to one side, wisps framing it on the other side. Her face was all angles, jaw soft, and triangular, cheekbones high and sculpted framing large almond shaped eyes. Exotic was the word that came to mind. Her lips were so incredibly soft, lush and a pink so ripe he imagined kissing them. Her eyes found his. Her eyes were an exquisite color framed by a thick lacing of dark eyelashes. He couldn't tell if they were a brown so light they looked gray or if they were gray with light brown highlights. She couldn't have looked at him for more than a heartbeat, but it felt like forever and at the same time like nothing at all. He wanted to make a scene, if only to have her attention for just a second more. Long silver earrings dangled from delicate earlobes to dance along her jaw as she moved. She was so beautiful it hurt. Then she spoke.

"Good evening, everyone." A loud chorus of good evening's, hey's, hello's even whistles sounded in response. She laughed, a wonderful sound that made him shiver.

"I see we have some new guests in the house." Her eyes flicked to him, making his heart miss a beat, and she waved. He found himself waving in return with a stupid smile on his face. Her voice was accented slightly with an island drawl.

"Welcome." She nodded her head in a courtly, respectful manner. He felt the need to say thank you but managed to stifle it. Her eyes searched the crowd, finally settling on someone.

"Thank you, Eve, as always for that amazing introduction." Then she ran her eyes over the crowd. "And huge thanks to all of you for coming out to see me tonight." The crowd cheered and applauded almost riotously. She threw back her head and laughed, the sound drowned out by the noise. He felt gypped, wanting almost desperately to hear her joy. She lifted one hand into the air and flattened it so that her palm was parallel to the floor, slowly lowering it in the universal sign to turn it down. The volume of the crowd decreased, almost magically, until the room was in near silence.

"Alright. Without further ado, I think it is high time we got this show on the road, so to speak." A hum of excitement swept through the crowd and then Himiko began to play.

**··········**

**Ruby's POV**

Himiko was gorgeous as she played. The tune was chillingly beautiful, almost as haunting as the beauty playing it. Each note was enchanting, lingering...mystical. Himiko's fingers danced expertly over the many strings of the instrument, cradling and coveting. She wanted to be the instrument held in those delicate hands. She shook her head feeling like the fog was shifting around her to reveal the lighthouse. The ghostly notes of the song tried to blow the fog back into place which is what made her fight against it. The fog was thick, almost tangible against her skin but when swatted at it remained immovable, untouchable. Physically, she couldn't fight it. So she let go. Her eyes slid closed so no one could see. She let the demon in her come forward, the power of what made her what she was sliding over and around her like a well worn second skin. She sighed as her power flowed through her, swirling and warm, comforting. She knew that if one of the many humans around her could see her eyes they'd gasp in horror at their black depths. She forced her eyes to revert to human normal before looking up at Himiko. The woman was staring at her, an odd look on her face before she quickly glanced away, hands never once faltering. The fog was there, she could feel it but now it was like water lapping against the sides of a boat, she could feel it but move through it. Still she knew the water could capsize her if she wasn't careful. She pulled the magic that was innately hers around her like a shield. She looked around the bar. Among but no longer a part of the thrall over the crowd she could see the magic at work. Everyone was staring at the beauty on the stage, faces filled with wonder and delight. She looked at Sam seeing him in a similar state of enthrallment. She had an idea. She leaned across to the table next to her to speak to a couple.

"She's amazing!" The man said nothing, watching simply as if she'd never said anything. The woman nodded her head distractedly. She sat back. The magic had more control over men. She leaned towards Sam.

"I'm going to get another drink. Be right back." He nodded.

"Okay." His voice was bland, distracted and delayed.

At least he had spoken. She grabbed her cup and threaded her way through the couple tables separating the stage from the bar, only one woman even noticed her by shifting so that her foot was tucked out of the way. She put her cup down on the bar in front of where Eve was leaning on her elbows, blocking the woman's view. Eve inadvertently tried to move to see around her but Ruby moved with the woman so that she was all Eve could see. She smiled at the soft frown forming on the woman's face and lifted her glass, shaking it gently in the universal sign for a refill. Eve turned around reluctantly and handed the glass to Michelle who slapped her drink together in a hurry. A few seconds later a new drink was in front of her. Eve seemed to want to go back to watching the show but that couldn't happen.

"Eve?" She smiled sweetly at the woman who smiled slightly back, still distracted. "I'd like to talk to you."

"Sure. Can it wait until Lootie finishes?" Lootie? Ah yes, Himiko. She turned up the charm, trying to re-initiate the flirting from earlier.

"I can't convince you to share even the tiniest bit of conversation with me? Two leg spreaders in and I just now realized it takes two to tangle with this drink." She took a big gulp of the drink before leaning on the counter. Eve offered her a bright smile. It seemed that the longer she kept the woman's attention off of Himiko the more Eve paid attention to her.

"What instrument does Himiko play anyway?" Eve laughed slightly.

"I had to ask her myself at first. I'd never seen or heard anything like it."

"So what is it, like a special guitar or something?" She took another drink as Eve laughed again at her.

"Nah. It's a lute. Lootie told me she took up playing it to preserve a dying art." A lute. That was what it was. She knew it was familiar but couldn't remember what it was.

"A lute? Cool!"

"Very cool. I've told her that many times. She plays it so perfectly too. She really should be famous instead of lumping it with us small town folk." Ruby nodded emphatically before taking a small sip.

"She didn't grow up here?"

"Nope. Came here almost five years ago saying she liked the quite of small towns for inspiration. Don't expect she'll stay here too much longer though."

"Why not?"

"Her type never do. You know, the creative type." Ruby nodded again.

"Her type? You say that like you guys see a lot of musicians through here."

"Oh yeah. For a small town a lot of musical types seem to wander through. Had a woman right before Lootie, a guitarist, stay with us for almost a year and a half. Real self-absorbed that one. Then before her a bassist for about four months. They come and go."

"Really? Anyone who's ever become famous?" Eve shrugged and smiled.

"Not that I know of. Madeline, she was a violinist who left almost two and a half years back, stayed with us a while. She was a real sweet heart. We were all sad to see her go. She was magic with a violin." Her voice sounded wistful. "I guess we are lucky. We always seem to have a resident musician in town."

"Are they all as good as Himiko?"

"Now that you mention it, they've all been really good by their own rights."

She felt her face screw up in confusion. A string of musicians. Was it possible that Himiko was just a powerfully charismatic performer with psychic powers out to wazoo? She pondered that thought for a moment. Nah, too simple, or complicated, depending on how you looked at it. A small town like this that seemed to be a magnet for amazing musicians? Then a thought occurred to her.

"You ever get any sexy male guitarists through here? I'd love to get my hands on one of those!" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. Eve laughed that deep belly laugh that said she found Ruby entertaining.

"Unfortunately no. They are always women, oddly enough." Ruby poked her lower lip out in full out pout mode which made Eve laugh again. "Wouldn't that upset your...boyfriend?" _Boyfriend _seemed to be a question in and of itself. Ruby raised her eyebrows in mock surprise and laughed boisterously. If only.

"Oh no! He's not my boyfriend. We are more a, what do ya call it..." She pretended to search for the right words, "friends with benefits." Eve smiled as if everything made sense now.

"Well he is delicious." Her face scrunched up in distaste before smoothing into mischievous lines. "I hope his...bedside manner is better than his manners 'cause he's a bit of an ass." Anger flared through her, hot and uncontrollable for a second before she squelched it, smiling broadly.

"Yeah. He can be an ass but he has his moments." She realized as she said it how true the statement was. Eve laughed.

"Don't they all." Not a question just a statement. Ruby nodded then smiled, nodding in the general direction of where Sam was.

"Speaking of." She rolled her eyes then looked down at her glass. "Could ya top me off before I go back?" Eve smiled sympathetically before refilling Ruby's drink and handing it back, an invitation clear in her eyes as their fingers touched around the cool glass. Ruby laughed and winked at Eve who smiled devilishly, letting go and leaning back on the counter. It would only be moments before Himiko held her captive again.

She returned and watched the crowd, sipping her drink. When Himiko finished playing she watched the crowd come back to itself, it was like watching a spell being lifted. They all seemed to settle back into their skin, like the performance was an out of body experience, personalities clicking on behind their eyes. The room erupted in deafening applause. Himiko stood, one hand gripping the neck of her Lute as she bowed at the waist. It was a fluid, well oiled motion as if she was used to it, holding a very archaic air. Ruby stood and applauded as well. It was impressive magic this one had. She planned on talking to the woman before leaving. Sam was standing and applauding as well, staring down at his glass. She looked as well seeing the ice was long melted, a pool of condensation underneath it, a few straggling drop running down into the small puddle. He leaned in.

"What is going on Ruby?" It was then that she decided she didn't need to talk to Himiko and got Sam out of there.

…**...**

**Back at the Hotel**

**Almost an Hour later**

"Ruby? Will you tell me what the fuck you are not telling me now?" She sat back staring in satisfaction at the computer screen before turning it around to face Sam's general direction. He waltzed over and began looking at it.

"A Jorogumo, translation, "whore spider"." He moved just his eyes to look at her. She shrugged and gestured at the laptop.

"Really?" His voice held just a hint of arrogance and quite a healthy dose of irritation.

"Just read it would you!" She couldn't fend off the irritation in her voice. He sighed, sat in the seat opposite her and read. When he was done he looked up at her.

"Well?" She was greeted with silence for a few moments.

"Tell me what you know." She gestured at the laptop emphatically.

"What do you think?" He shook his head.

"You and I both know what I just read. I want to know what you aren't telling me." She took a deep breath in to quite the anger trying to surface and stood, pacing a small space in front of the table. She told Sam about the conversation she'd had with Eve, his eyes trailing her attentively the whole time. When she finished she waited expectantly.

"Okay." Her eyebrows reached for the sky.

"Okay?" Her voice was thick with incredulity. "Sam, come on. All the pieces fit."

"So you found out that this town has a history of great female musicians rolling through and assume they are a Jorogumo?" She shook her head.

"No. All the women are the same woman shape-shifted into different guises."

"And what of the varying instruments you mentioned these women playing? According to lore Jorogumo lure men with Lutes."

"I already thought of that as well. Jorogumo can shape-shift as a defense mechanism to avoid suspicion. A Lute is such a rare instrument to have mastered in this day and age, it would just be too suspicious. So what if Himiko, or whatever her real name is, plays multiple instruments, adapting with the times?" Sam was staring at her like he still didn't believe it, or didn't want to. She shouted in frustration. "You didn't see what you all looked like when she was performing. Tell me, what do you remember from the hour she was on stage, Sam?" He blinked several times as if searching for an answer. She cocked her head, emphasizing his silence.

"You said you were going to get another drink and you'd be right back." She nodded.

"Yeah. And how long was I gone, Sam?" He frowned, trying to remember before looking up at her.

"I don't know."

"Uh huh. And your drink? When you snapped out of it the ice was completely melted and you hadn't touched it since before Himiko began her performance. You saw that for yourself." He nodded.

"That was what made me realize I'd missed something." He frowned again. "That is a serious time gap." She nodded.

"Sounds like you were trapped by her spell to me."

"Why didn't it work on you? You are attracted to women."

"Sometimes. But her true power is over men. The women were enraptured as well but they could break away if they really wanted." He nodded.

"Okay." He sounded reluctant then looked back at the laptop. "According to lore her only weak spot is where her upper abdomen meets the thorax, penetrable only by a bronze blade in insect form. To kill her we need to remove the heart."

"Yes. Why the heart I don't know." He shrugged.

"It doesn't matter." He sounded resigned. She looked him over, shrugging it off. He clearly didn't want to kill her. Oh well.

"Okay. We know how to kill her. Now we just need to catch her on her off time."

**··········**

**Sam's POV**

He sat in his car impatiently waiting for Ruby to return. She had insisted that he let her do recon since he was too susceptible to the Jorogumo's charms. Just thinking that made him squirm in discomfort. He hated that Ruby was out there doing what he should have been capable of doing himself. His car was just one of the many sitting in the overcrowded parking lot outside of the bar. He knew that Himi- the Jorogumo would be up on the stage, gorgeous and shining in her spotlight and he wanted to go inside. He wanted it so bad his hand was already reaching for the door handle before he caught himself. He balled his hand into a fist and cranked the stereo. People began steadily filtering out of the bar in small groups, telling him she had just finished her performance. Regret twinged through him in a flash, there and gone. Ruby would be waiting for Himiko to leave, waiting to follow her. He impatiently tapped his fingers against the wheel. He didn't know how much time had passed. The passenger side door opened suddenly. His heart jumped into his throat and his hand went for his gun in a new holster under his arm. Ruby slid into the seat with a sideways smirk. Either he had been very distracted or she was just very good because he hadn't seen or heard her.

"Don't shoot." She said laughingly, holding her hands up in mock surrender. "I'll tell you everything you want to know." He rolled his eyes and clicked the safety back on before re-holstering.

"What did you find out?" She smiled broadly.

"Everything. Come on." She made a motion to turn the car on. "Take a right out of the parking lot." He didn't ask how she knew where to go or how she'd gotten back. She was a demon, few places were off limits to her like. They had been driving about fifteen minutes down the same road, ten of that with the only light coming from the moon above them and the swath cut by their headlights.

"Slow down, lead foot. There will be a turn to your left in about three hundred yards." He slowed the car to about twenty miles per hour.

"You passed it." He braked, staring at her.

"What? I said left turn in about three hundred yards." He slowly back pedaled. "There." She pointed to a gap between the trees. He turned slowly towards it. The car lights revealed that the "turn" was onto a path carved by tires that could scarcely be called more than a wagon trail. He tossed her a peevish look that said better than words, "Really"? She shrugged with a small smile then motioned forward. He shook his head and followed the trail. Tree limbs scraped against the sides of his car as they crept along at a whopping fifteen miles per hour. He knew his paint job would be scratched all to hell and back which did nothing for his mood. They drove down this path for almost a half hour before coming to a small clearing big enough for his Camaro plus two.

"Stop and turn the car off." He did. As he sat there for a moment waiting for his eyes to adjust to the ink black of the dark he had to ask.

"Where the fuck are we?" He couldn't see her very clearly.

"About forty minutes away from the Jorogumo's lair."

"Then why did we stop?" He thought she turned her head toward him but couldn't be sure.

"Because from here we walk."

"Forty minutes through this dark?" She chuckled.

"Yes. Don't worry. I'll hold your hand." The warmth of anger burned through him making him reach for the door handle.

The pop of the door rang through the small clearing, sweeping out into the night. As with most countryside the chirp of crickets and nightlife was a deafening roar in the background. Ruby got out as well and he was surprised at how loud the door closing sounded in the perfect silence of the wilderness, emphasized all the more by the nightlife.

"Alright. Lets go. Follow me." She began moving off into the darkness, adjusting the short bronze sword running down her spine. When he'd asked her what weapon she would use she smiled and told him not to worry about her. He'd never fathomed she'd have a bronze short sword. It looked old and well used, something like what was used by Roman legionaries. He followed behind her adjusting the bronze throwing knives sheathed along his forearms, testing the draw of them, satisfied. She was leading him towards a small opening in the trees and onto something of a hiking trail.

"So where does she put up shop?" His voice sounded like a gunshot in the dark.

"There is an old lumber mill that back during its hay day used to be the towns heart of commerce. In 1943 it was shut down for 'unhealthy conditions'." She said the last as if she didn't believe it.

"How do you know all of this?" She waggled her phone, the little square of light strobing through the darkness.

"Technology. Equal parts blessing and curse." He couldn't help but chuckle lightly which made her stop and turn to him for a moment before continuing on. "It has remained abandoned for over sixty years, mostly forgotten except for the occasional thrill seeker." He nodded.

It would make the perfect hidey hole for monsters of almost any flavor. They continued on in silence for the last twenty minutes of their journey coming to a sudden stop at the tree line. The mill was indeed very old, walls painted in lovely shades of rust. Vines crept almost all the way up the walls, as if nature were trying to take it all back. Some of the windows were busted out but most of them remained, surprisingly intact. He was about to begin searching for an entrance but Ruby had that covered as well, placing one hand on a busted out ground level window hopping deftly through it. He couldn't see her but he heard her land.

"Come on." He shrugged and followed suit. Ruby led him through a series of twists in the dark hallways until finally the dull flickering light of candles glowed at the end of the hallway. He drew his gun. It wouldn't kill her but it sure would hurt. They swept into the room, him to the left, Ruby right. His eyes immediately found Himiko. Her back was to them as she lit another candle.

"I was waiting for you." He frowned and glanced at Ruby to see her scanning the room, something he had overlooked. He forced himself to look away from the woman he was so inclined to stare at and scan the room. The walls were rusted, paint peeling off in strips and flakes, revealing the burnt orange of the metal beneath. The ceiling was incredibly high, going up and up for at least three stories. A cool draft from the left side of the room drew his attention to a metal door big enough to drive a small truck through, the massive opening was dark and ominous. He couldn't help but wonder what threats might reside in that darkness and the creeping imaginings were plenty. Himiko turned to face them, drawing his attention immediately back to her, and he dug the grip of the gun into his palm to steady himself. She was just so beautiful. She smiled.

"Now, now. There is no need to get nasty." She took a step forward as if the gun meant nothing to her at all.

"Stop." She smiled wider and took another step forward. He slid the hammer back on the gun, which wasn't necessary for the double action he had but it made a nicely convincing sound. She stopped and cocked her head, staring at him before taking another step. He smiled back. She had never tangled with the likes of him before so she had no idea that there never was nor ever would be a hunter of his like to compare to. The smile that stretched his face grew wide with self-assurance.

"Take one more step. I dare you." She threw her head back and laughed that wonderful sound that rolled over him like silk down his spine. She was good. Really good. He shook his head to clear it and refocused on her. She's just a bug, vermin. He ground the grip of his gun painfully into his palm. And he was the exterminator, there to light her shit up.

"You _are_ a fighter aren't you." She ran her eyes over him appreciatively and he flinched as he swore he felt her tongue run up his chest along the left side of his neck. "Mmmmmmm..." She closed her eyes as if to concentrate on a delicious flavor she was rolling around on her tongue. She opened her eyes and her head snapped to the left. She stared at Ruby who had moved while Himiko was distracted. He hadn't even seen her move. He shook his head violently trying to shake free of Himiko.

"You are an old one." Himiko's voice was as lovely as it was amused. Ruby laughed which made Himiko smile wider. "Don't let your years go to your head, girl. However old you are I can assure you, I am older. You cannot afford arrogance."

"You don't even know what you are dealing with, do you?" Ruby's voice was confident as her question fell flat between them.

"I have had my fair share of hunters. Do gooder fools who mistakenly think to challenge me. Brave though. That I can respect." Ruby nodded, pacing further behind Himiko who gave him her back to keep Ruby in her sights. Ruby's eyes flicked to him as if trying to tell him something then back to Himiko. Himiko looked over her shoulder at him then back at Ruby a laugh rolling from deep within her stomach.

"Did you think by giving me two targets you'd manage to distract me?" She laughed again before stepping toward Ruby. "He is no threat to me." He felt anger try to flicker to life but the ember was squashed by a thick blanket of comfort. He wanted to argue with Himiko and the displaced feeling before he noticed his gun hanging in a loose grip by his side. He didn't remember lowering it. His rage tried to push against that so warm, comforting feeling but was squashed down again.

"You are attracted to women but not enough to give me hold over you." He'd bet money that there would be a devastating pout accompanying the tone. "Too bad for you." Ruby shook her head.

"No. I know too much. Your magic cannot touch me now."

"Oh, but I almost had you back at the bar." Ruby shrugged.

"Yeah. Well you know what they say about almosts." Himiko laughed lightly at that.

"It is true that I was not expecting your demon magic to shield you so thoroughly from me. I should have rolled you under when I had the chance." Ruby shook her head with a smile as he struggled to breathe through whatever was filling the air. Ruby stood unscathed while he, Sam Winchester couldn't even lift his fucking gun? Oh no. This bitch had to die!

"Can the act, bitch. You can't have me." She rolled her shoulders and then the sword along her spine was in her hand moving in lazy circles through the air.

"We shall see who has whom, girl." Whatever was pouring around him was heavy against his chest and he struggled for the air that had seemed to turn to water. Ruby looked at him.

"And you thought we were hunting arachne." Himiko hissed in disgust drawing Ruby's eyes back to her.

"Do not mention those beasts again while in my presence. _Chijo ikimono_!" She spit at the last words as if they left a bad taste in her mouth. _Filthy creatures _she'd called them. Ruby cocked her head with a mocking smile.

"Awww. Am I pissing you off?" Himiko laughed and then he watched her body morph.

The skin moved like something was stretching, pushing at it from the inside. Legs burst from her sides in a shower of light pink goo, blood trickling in fine lines from the joints joined to her body. Her laugh changed with her body into something creepy and inhuman that slithered down the back of his throat to wriggle against the walls of his stomach. Her flesh bubbled and grew monstrously huge, the new skin taking on bright hues of yellow, highlighted by deep reds, only a shade or two from blood, darkened and emphasized by black. Long fine hairs protruded from her body as she fell forward so that her belly was now parallel to the ground. As her shift progressed the weight of the air crushed around him, squeezing his chest and throat forcing him to concentrate on expanding his lungs, something that his body had always done for him on its own. The noises of her morphing body were wet and sucking like things were being popped out of place, broken, and reknit. A crunching noise was subtle but constant. Her legs grew and grew until they were incredibly long, slender and black and yellow striped. One of them was less than a foot from him making his heart race. He swallowed convulsively a few times trying to shake free of whatever was wrong with him, head swimming from lack of oxygen. His fingers brushed limply along the floor and he realized at some point he'd fallen to his knees.

"_Do I scare you, girl?_" The voice was a hiss that shivered along the skin, the words sounding unnatural.

"Damn, bitch. You got ugly!" Ruby's voice came to him through the fog sounding only a little breathless and a lot disgusted. A hissing screech came from the giant spider.

"_You have insulted me for the last time._" Then her and Ruby were moving in a blur of motion.

He could hardly follow them as they advanced and dodged each other, his vision slightly blurred from lack of air. Ruby dive rolled to avoid a strike from the Jorogumo but the spider whore wouldn't have any of it. She extended two of her long front legs, wrapping them around Ruby's waist in mid roll. Ruby was suddenly flying ass over elbows through the air. Her back collided solidly with a steel beam and she tumbled head first toward the cement floor. His heart hitched, skipping a beat right before she twisted her body in mid air so that she fell to her hands and knees. She whirled on her knees as the spider moved in a blur of speed, stopping right behind Ruby. One of the front legs lashed across Ruby's face knocking her head back into the beam behind her. While Ruby was dazed the spider used one of her legs to press across her throat, lifting her up until her feet dangled about two feet off the ground, rearing up and wrapping her long legs around the pole using her huge weight and the leg at Ruby's throat to hold her. It was all over in under two minutes.

"You thought _you_ could kill me?" The Jorogumo laughed in Ruby's face, a hissing sound that jerked through his stomach. He could see Ruby's smile from the side view he had of the two of them. Her teeth were bright red with fresh blood. She spit at the Jorogumo and he saw a gold glint at her side a few seconds in advance.

"Fuck you." Her voice was laden with rage and then she sunk the blade into the spider.

Himiko's scream tore through the room, bouncing off all the metal, echoing through his skull. He covered his ears in a feeble attempt to keep her screams from rupturing his ear drums. Her legs flailed around the pole, the leg at Ruby's throat pushing harder. Then she moved in a movement too quick to follow and Ruby was screaming in a loud, ragged cry of pain and he saw her legs spasming from whatever the whore spider was doing to her. Ruby fell silent, legs going still. The silence was loud. Then he heard a wet, almost vulgar sounding noise and saw gold glinting in the dim light. Was Ruby about to stab the Jorogumo again? Did she have another knife? He couldn't remember. The giant spider fell back from Ruby who was plastered to the metal beam with a shining blanket of gold. He realized a little belatedly that the gold blanket was webbing.

Wet popping noises made him look at the Jorogumo. All that giant form was collapsing in on itself as if decaying before his eyes like a reverse time lapse video of a flower blooming. He thought for a second that Ruby had managed to kill the creature. It was as if all that decaying mass became translucent. He could see the outline of the woman Himiko paraded around as. She was a slight, dark shadow, oddly shining through the decaying mass of the spider. Then Himiko stumbled naked out of the corpse of the spider she'd been only moments before. Her skin glowed, shining with its own light. A fine sheen of sweat coated her as she fell to her knees. Her small, delicate hands closed over the hilt of the blade sticking out from the hollow between her ribs. She made a small noise at the back of her throat, eyes sliding closed and her lips moved in silence as if she were praying. She yanked the knife from her chest with a pained scream. Sam realized he could breathe once again as she leaned her weight forward on one hand. She groaned and his eyes widened as he watched the flesh re-knit itself leaving nothing but a shiny, pink mark where the blade had been shoved in. Her eyes locked on his.

"Come to me, Sam." Her words had a pull to them. He felt himself getting to his feet like he was being pulled by strings. Her eyes reflected something he couldn't fathom and at the same time wanted as badly as his next breath. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying not to see her but it was as if the image of all that pale, bare flesh had burned itself across his eyes.

"_Come to me, Sam." _Her words seemed to wash through him, making his blood burn hotter. He took a step toward her without thinking. He dug his finger nails into his palm. The slight pain helped clear his head a little. Then he had an idea.

"_Sam. You don't want me to have to tell you again." _The anger in her words scalded along his skin and pulled his feet forward.

He allowed himself to be dragged towards her. He stopped a foot in front of her. She smiled up at him and his heart hurt at how beautiful she was. She closed the distance between them, going up on her tip toes, stretching her body against his, arms wrapping around his neck. He allowed her to pull his face closer to hers, he could already taste her lips against his. He felt his heart speed a little faster, breath hitching in his throat. No. He had to get away. He had to pull back. But he couldn't. As his hands found her waist he tried to hold onto the memory of her body stretching and forming into the monster that she truly was. Tried to tell himself she'd hurt him. The image of Ruby, bloody and stuck to a beam rocked through him and he suddenly had his knife in his hand. One second he was a breath from kissing Himiko, the next his back slammed into the floor.

He rolled to his feet to see her standing a good distance back. She stared at him patient and angry at the same time. He rushed her. She was fast and every time he lashed out she blocked, or simply wasn't where he was expecting. Naked and unarmed she moved with a confidence and skill that spoke of ages of practiceHe was stabbing downwards at her. He knew she could see it, knew she was ready for it. She caught his wrist in both of hers and he used his free hand to draw his other knife from its sheath on his hip, slicing it in a fast, deep arc across her stomach and right breast. She hissed and leaped backwards landing in a crouch. The wound healed before his eyes and then he was back at her. She just seemed to be playing with him. He'd get lucky occasionally and slice her, she'd heal and he'd be back at square one. Out of desperation he tackled into her, catching her off guard, sinking his knife into her stomach. As her back slammed into the floor the blade dug in deeper and he angled upwards ready to take her heart. Her fist came out of nowhere, slamming into his face sending him sprawling onto the floor. He hauled his weight up onto his hands and knees. Himiko groaned and when he looked at her she had his knife in her hand. Exhaustion rolled over him. What the fuck.

"_Stop fighting me, Sam. I could make this so pleasurable for you. You'd never know." _Her voice was rich silk along his spine, making him shudder.

"_Never know what? That you were killing me?" _He lifted a hand to his mouth. He hadn't known until he'd spoken that she had been speaking in Japanese...and he'd understood. He'd spoken back to her like it was his native tongue. He'd taken two semesters of Japanese in college to fill gaps in his schedule but he only had a conversational understanding at best. Her magic had closed around him without his knowledge. Subtle. Very subtle. She was good. It felt so good. He closed his eyes as her magic stroked over his skin. He pulled his cheek between his teeth and bit down hard. The taste of blood washed through his mouth, pulling him back a little. He looked up to see her smiling at him, sitting cross legged with her lute in her lap. Her fingers began moving expertly over the strings as she stared at him. Each note ran through him, undoing him piece by piece. It was just a fucking lute! There was no way he could fall prey to _that! _He desperately covered his ears but couldn't block out her haunting call.

"_Please, don't fight it, Sam. It will feel so much better if you'd just give in." _The problem was that it already felt so good, like a hit of coke for a recovered addict. The high was just so high.

"Shut up. Shut up! SHUT UP!" He shouted at her, shaking his head violently trying to shake free of her influence as his last bit of restraint shivered within him. It felt so good. So good. He wanted to fall into her arms and listen to her forever. He dug his fingers into his scalp, pressing his palms harder against his ears. "NO!" No he didn't. He needed, no he _wanted _to kill her.

"_You're sweating everywhere. Are you hot, Sam? You'd be a lot cooler if you'd take some of that off." _It was just a suggestion and yet he found himself ripping his jacket off and shrugging out of his shoulder holster, leaving his rig flapping loosely around his thighs. He froze. Sweat rolled down skin that was on fire with the urge to peel everything off of it. He squeezed his eyes tight shut arms shaking with the effort to stop as he palmed the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head in a slow, agonizing movement. He was naked from the hips up, beads of sweat rolling down the planes of his stomach. He stared at her waiting for whatever came next when what he really wanted to do was draw his gun and empty a magazine or two into her face.

She made a purr of appreciation and he shivered as she began to sing as she played. He shook his head and threw his head back, staring up into the dark of the ceiling, heaving great breaths. He was Sam fucking Winchester and he would not so easily fall into this bitch's web. He dug his nails into his palm, hissing as blood and sweat mingled, stinging the half-crescent wounds. The pain brought with it a moment of pure clarity. For a moment he was free of her spell. He pulled his arm back and threw the shirt in his hand at her with everything he had before spinning on his heel and running for all he was worth for the door. A loud clang sounded behind him, echoing through the hollow depths of the room. His heart thudded in his throat as the metal shutter of the door he ran for began closing. He didn't know where this door went, didn't know what the darkness held in its depths or care that it might only lead him further into her lair and not out. He just needed to get away from her. He _would not _allow her to steal him away a piece at a time. The door was almost closed but he was so close. So close. He could feel the cold draft breathe down the slick expanse of his chest he was so close. He only had moments and was too far away.

"NOOO!" He shouted, diving, trying for all he was worth to get there in time. He wasn't thinking about Ruby or killing Himiko. The only thought that flooded his mind was escape. His body slammed against the bottom of the steel shutter as it clanged closed. He slammed his palms against the door several times in a blind panic before spinning, putting his back against the door. His eyes slid shut and he hissed through bared teeth as the icy press of the metal seared away the heat of his skin. It felt so fucking good but he forced himself to ignore that, fitting his fingers in the groves under the door, bracing his body and pushing, lifting with his legs. His muscles shook and shivered with strain and he threw his head back, slamming it into the metal behind him as he roared his rage to the blackness above so that it echoed around him. His legs slid from under him and he allowed himself to slump against the door, breathing heavily.

"_You're so sweaty, baby. No man should sweat like that unless his woman is under him." _Ruby's voice filtered through his mind in a tired, sexually playful tone. He looked up and saw her staring at him, head cocked to the side, propped against the metal beam behind her, eyes all but closed. The muscles of her face were slack, blood dripping in a steady stream from that lush mouth. His heart stuttered in his chest as if unsure of it's purpose for a moment. Her eyes fluttered shut and panic flashed through him so quickly he was nearly blinded by it.

Images suddenly flashed through his head: him pumping furiously between Himiko's icy pale thighs, her nails digging into his back, her riding him as he gripped her hips, head thrown back as he cried out for her. He shook his head as carnal visions cascaded, one after the other through his mind until he could smell her. He slammed his head back against the door once, twice, three times, each harder than the last. He could taste the flavor of her along his tongue, at the back of his throat, feel her skin against his as if they had already fucked.

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HEAD!" He screamed, bursting to his feet. He staggered back against the door, moaning as his vision was lost to the image of her crying out above him, body spasming as she clenched tight around where he thrust into her. So wet, so tight. He wanted her. He wanted her now!

He was suddenly in front of her, those large, gorgeous eyes staring up at him. She stopped playing her lute but her magic was still there, he could taste it, taste her at the back of his throat. He watched as she got to her knees and her magic more than her hands made him bend down to meet her.

Their lips met and his world swam, his hands ran down the back of her body until he gripped her thighs, parting them on either side of him as he lowered her to the floor. Her body didn't feel like what he remembered. Her lips didn't fit the way they should, her taste foreign to him. She rolled him over, hips moving against his as she fed at his mouth. She broke the kiss, sitting straight and throwing her head back. Her incredibly long, dark, silken hair cascaded around her, brushing against the skin of his hips as she rode him. It felt so good. He moaned, hands going to her hips, but he frowned. The hips weren't full enough for him. The breasts that moved above him were beautiful, but they weren't lush enough. Her eyes were amazing but they didn't glow the right way. He wasn't lost to her gaze. Her touch felt amazing but it just wasn't enough. He rolled her over thrusting against her hard enough to rock her head against the floor. She moaned and dug her fingers into the muscles of his back making him shudder. As he lowered his mouth to her neck a flash of gold got his attention. He sank his teeth into her neck making her arch underneath him. As she cried out his fingers closed over the cool blade. He dug his free hand into her hair, palming a giant handful of it, pulling her head back to expose her throat in a long, pale line. Her body undulated beneath him and his mouth closed over her left nipple. She cried out for him again. He was almost sucked back under her magic and then another woman was under him, her dark curls framing pale skin. Burnt honey eyes glowed up at him.

His eyes stung as he remembered the terrible scream torn from her throat. Himiko cried out in rage as if she knew her spell had been broken a moment before he thrust the blade under her ribs. She screamed and her whole body bucked against him. He felt her magic try to crush him, her body was beginning to shift beneath him, skin stretching. He abandoned the knife and shoved both hands through the narrow hole the blade had made, forcing it wider. He shoved with everything he had, muscling past her lungs and layers of muscles under the skin. He was almost elbow deep inside her chest. Her hands beat against him, screams deafening. She seemed to be frozen in mid-change. His arm scraped against her sternum as her fought to get to her heart. Blood spurted from her mouth now as she gurgled out scream after scream. Her body was almost too hot around his arms as his fingers finally found her heart. She stared at him and fell silent as she realized her death.

"She better not be dead." He growled into her face.

Himiko smiled at him and he knew he'd always remember that smile. He closed his fingers around her heart and Himiko's fingers spasmed against his shoulder as blood spurted from her mouth in a dark almost black gush. Heart blood. Her body twitched as he clawed and dug at the muscle. He grabbed the blade with one hand and pushed it through the cavity to slice the ventricles holding the heart in place. He screamed in triumph as he pulled her heart free of her chest. Her body fell, lifelessly to the floor as he stared at the shredded muscle in his hand. His chest was heaving as he tossed her heart to the ground beside her. Ruby.

He stood so fast he was dizzy and spun to see Ruby still stuck to the beam. He stopped long enough to pick up his knife and sheath it before running over to her. She dangled almost three feet off the ground he wouldn't be able to reach all of the webbing with his knives. He searched the room quickly with his eyes finding Ruby's sword. He ran and picked it up coming back. She was staring blankly through barely cracked lids in the general direction of where he had killed Himiko. Blood and thick yellow fluid oozed from the giant bite where her shoulder and neck met. It looked like Himiko had worried at the flesh there. She was bleeding pretty steadily the gold of the webbing a dark copper where her blood touched it. His heart played a rapid game of hop scotch in his chest as he sliced at the webbing. It took him almost five minutes of sawing at the sticky shit before he got all the way through it. Ruby sagged but it still held her. He pulled at the lower corner of it and it slowly peeled it away like the worlds most industrial duct tape.

When nothing but the top corner touched her she fell free and he scrambled to catch her, only getting to her in time enough to keep her head from colliding with the floor. He turned her in his arms and hissed when the yellow ooze from the bite on her shoulder touched his bicep. He knew what it was now. He laid her gently down and ran to where his shirt lay next to Himiko and then ran and snatched his jacket off the floor, shoulder rig flapping against his thighs. He shrugged back into it, the straps feeling weird against his bare skin. He ran back and dropped to his knees beside Ruby. He pressed on the bite with his shirt forcing venom out of the wound in an arc that narrowly missed him. She never blinked, never tried to open her eyes again or made any noise. Jesus. If the venom was fatal he wasn't sure he could save her. The thought had him gasping as his heart did cartwheels against his ribs. He got as much of it out as he could at that moment and put his jacket on her. It wouldn't do to have both of them incapacitated by the venom. He pulled her body to his lifting her with an arm under her legs and one under her shoulders. As he stood her head lolled and her arm flopped lifelessly to swing at her side. His eyes stung again as he rushed toward the dark hallway they'd come down.

One thought kept repeating through his head. Please. Don't let her be dead.

**A/N- Holy Hell! Wow! Okay so this is a doozy of a chapter. I really hope you guys liked it! I gave myself the jeebies writing the description of Himiko's transformation so I hope I'm not alone on that one. Please do me the favor of reviewing. I'd love to hear your reactions. We will see you next chapter. Ta-ta for now, lovelies!**


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